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In  the  same  Series. 


PHILOBIBLON,  a  Treatise  on  the  Love  of 
Books.  By  Richard  de  Bury,  Bishop  of  Durham.  With 
Introduction  by  Charles  Orr,  Librarian  of  the  Case 
Library  of  Cleveland,     i  vol.,  8vo,  $2.50. 


BIBLIOMANIA 


Sbf0  Bdition  ie  limited  to  500  Copies. 


25  Copies  on  Japan  Paper,      -        -        -       Numbered     i  to    25 
475       "       "   Deckle-edged  Paper,      -        -  '*         26  "   500 

9t  wbicb  tbfd  is  C0P12 

«o.-1'i."\. 


BIBLIOMANIA 


IN 


THE  MIDDLE  AGES 

BY 

F.  SOMNER  MERRYWEATHER 

IVitk  an  Introdttction  by 

CHARLES  ORR 
Librarian  of  Case  Library 


NEW  YORK 

MEYER  BROTHERS  &  COMPANY 

IQCXD 


^>  it  0  R  1 

\j  ±  \'  \}  X 


Copyright,  1900 
By  Meyer  Bros.  &  Co. 


X.oui0  "QOlefBg  &  Co. 
printers  .... 
tie  rulton  Street 
•    .    .    Hew  Sorb 


Bibliomania  in  the  ^ibMe  Hges 


SKETCHES    OF    BOOKWORMS,    COLLECTORS, 
BIBLE  STUDENTS,  SCRIBES  AND  ILLUMINATORS 

From  the  Anglo-Saxon  and  Norman  Periods  to  the  Introduction  of  Printing 

into  England,  with  Anecdotes  Illustrating  the  History  of  the 

Monastic  Libraries  of  Great  Britain  in  the  Olden  Time 

by  F.  SOMNER  MERRYWEATHER,  with 

an  Introduction  by  CHARLES  ORR, 

Librarian  of  Case  Library. 


■4 


fr=W>rr 


:       [^^ 


il(3'''»t=JJ 


INTRODUCTION. 


s. 


(^ 


N  every  century  for  more  than  two 
thousand  years,  many  men  have 
owed  their  chief  enjoyment  of  life 
to  books.  The  bibliomaniac  of 
today  had  his  prototype  in  ancient 
Rome,  where  book  collecting  was 
fashionable  as  early  as  the  first  century  of  the 
Christian  era.  Four  centuries  earlier  there  was  an 
active  trade  in  books  at  Athens,  then  the  center  of 
the  book  production  of  the  world.  This  center 
of  literary  activity  shifted  to  Alexandria  during 
the  third  century  b.  c.  through  the  patronage  of 
Ptolemy  Soter,  the  founder  of  the  Alexandrian 
Museum,  and  of  his  son,  Ptolemy  Philadelphus ; 
and  later  to  Rome,  where  it  remained  for  many 


viii  BIBLIOMANIA. 

centuries,  and  where  bibliophiles  and  bibliomaniacs 
were  gradually  evolved,  and  from  whence  in  time 
other  countries  were  invaded. 

For  the  purposes  of  the  present  work  the  middle 
ages  cover  the  period  beginning  with  the  seventh 
century  and  ending  with  the  time  of  the  invention 
of  printing,  or  about  seven  hundred  years,  though 
they  are  more  accurately  bounded  by  the  years  500 
and  1500  A.  D.  It  matters  little,  however,  since 
there  is  no  attempt  at  chronological  arrangement. 

About  the  middle  of  the  present  century  there 
began  to  be  a  disposition  to  grant  to  mediaeval 
times  their  proper  place  in  the  history  of  the  pres- 
ervation and  dissemination  of  books,  and  Merry- 
weather's  Bibliomania  in  the  Middle  Ages  was  one 
of  the  earliest  works  in  English  devoted  to  the 
subject.  Previous  to  that  time,  those  ten  centuries 
lying  between  the  fall  of  the  Roman  Empire  and 
the  revival  of  learning  were  generally  referred  to 
as  the  Dark  Ages,  and  historians  and  other  writers 
were  wont  to  treat  them  as  having  been  without 
learning  or  scholarship  of  any  kind. 

Even  Mr.  Hallam,*  with  all  that  judicial  tem- 
perament and  patient  research  to  which  we  owe  so 
much,  could  find  no  good  to  say  of  the  Church  or 
its  institutions,  characterizing  the  early  university 

•  Hallam,  Henry.  "Introduction  to  the  Literature  of  Europe." 
4  vols.  London. 


) 

/■ 


BIBLIOMANIA.  ix 

as  the  abode  of  "indigent  vagabonds  withdrawn 
from  usual  labor,"  and  all  monks  as  positive  enemies 
of  learning. 

The  gloomy  survey  of  Mr.  Hallam,  clouded  no 
doubt  by  his  antipathy  to  all  things  ecclesiastical, 
served,  however,  to  arouse  the  interest  of  the  period, 
which  led  to  other  studies  with  different  results, 
and  later  writers  were  able  to  discern  below  the 
surface  of  religious  fanaticism  and  superstition  so 
characteristic  of  those  centuries,  much  of  interest 
in  the  history  of  literature  ;  to  show  that  every  age 
produced  learned  and  inquisitive  men  by  whom 
books  were  highly  prized  and  industriously  col- 
lected for  their  own  sakes ;  in  short,  to  rescue  the 
period  from  the  stigma  of  absolute  illiteracy. 

If  the  reader  cares  to  pursue  the  subject  further, 
after  going  through  the  fervid  defense  of  the  love 
of  books  in  the  middle  ages,  of  which  this  is  the 
introduction,  he  will  find  outside  of  its  chapters 
abundant  evidence  that  the  production  and  care  of 
books  was  a  matter  of  great  concern.  In  the 
pages  of  Mores  Catholici ;  or  Ages  of  Faith,  by 
Mr.  Kenelm  Digby,*  or  of  The  Dark  Ages,  by  Dr. 
S.  R.  Maitland,-|-  or  of  that  great  work  of  recent 

*  Digby,  Kenelm.  "Mores  Catholici;  or  Ages  of  Faith." 
3  vols.  London,  1848. 

t  Maitland,  S.  R.  "The  Dark  Ages;  a  Series  of  Essays  Intended 
to  Illustrate  the  State  of  Religion  and  Literature  in  the  Ninth,  Tenth, 
Eleventh  and  Twelfth  Centuries."    London,  1845. 


X  BIBLIOMANIA. 

years,  Books  and  their  Makers  during  the  Middle 
Ages,  by  Mr.  George  Haven  Putnam,*  he  will  see 
vivid  and  interesting  portraits  of  a  great  multitude 
of  mediaeval  worthies  who  were  almost  lifelong 
lovers  of  learning  and  books,  and  zealous  laborers 
in  preserving,  increasing  and  transmitting  them. 
And  though  little  of  the  mass  that  has  come  down 
to  us  was  worthy  of  preservation  on  its  own  account 
as  literature,  it  is  exceedingly  interesting  as  a 
record  of  centuries  of  industry  in  the  face  of  such 
difficulties  that  to  workers  of  a  later  period  might 
have  seemed  insurmountable. 

A  further  fact  worthy  of  mention  is  that  book 
production  was  from  the  art  point  of  view  fully 
abreast  of  the  other  arts  during  the  period,  as  must 
be  apparent  to  any  one  who  examines  the  collec- 
tions in  some  of  the  libraries  of  Europe.  Much  of 
this  beauty  was  wrought  for  the  love  of  the  art 
itself.  In  the  earlier  centuries  religious  institutions 
absorbed  nearly  all  the  social  intellectual  move- 
ments as  well  as  the  possession  of  material  riches 
and  land.  Kings  and  princes  were  occupied  with 
distant  wars  which  impoverished  them  and  deprived 
literature  and  art  of  that  patronage  accorded  to  it 

*  Putnam,  George  Haven.  "Books  and  their  Makers  during 
the  Middle  Ages;  a  Study  of  the  Conditions  of  the  Production 
and  Distribution  of  Literature  from  the  Fall  of  the  Roman  Empire 
to  the  Close  of  the  Seventeenth  Century." 


BIBLIOMANIA.  xi 

in  later  times.  There  is  occasional  mention,  how- 
ever, of  wealthy  laymen,  whose  religious  zeal  in- 
duced them  to  give  large  sums  of  money  for  the 
copying  and  ornamentation  of  books ;  and  there 
were  in  the  abbeys  and  convents  lay  brothers  whose 
fervent  spirits,  burning  with  poetical  imagination, 
sought  in  these  monastic  retreats  and  the  labor  of 
writing,  redemption  from  their  past  sins.  These 
men  of  faith  were  happy  to  consecrate  their  whole 
existence  to  the  ornamentation  of  a  single  sacred 
book,  dedicated  to  the  community,  which  gave 
them  in  exchange  the  necessaries  of  life. 

The  labor  of  transcribing  was  held,  in  the 
monasteries,  to  be  a  full  equivalent  of  manual 
labor  in  the  field.  The  rule  of  St.  Ferreol,  written 
in  the  sixth  century,  says  that,  "  He  who  does  not 
turn  up  the  earth  with  the  plough  ought  to  write 
the  parchment  with  his  fingers." 

Mention  has  been  made  of  the  difficulties  under 
which  books  were  produced ;  and  this  is  a  matter 
which  we  who  enjoy  the  conveniences  of  modern 
writing  and  printing  can  little  understand.  The 
hardships  of  the  scriptorium  were  greatest,  of 
course,  in  winter.  There  were  no  fires  in  the  often 
damp  and  ill-lighted  cells,  and  the  cold  in  some  of 
the  parts  of  Europe  where  books  were  produced 
must  have  been  very  severe.  Parchment,  the  ma- 
terial  generally  used   for  writing   upon   after  the 


xii  BIBLIOMANIA. 

seventh  century,  was  at  some  periods  so  scarce  that 
copyists  were  compelled  to  resort  to  the  expedient 
of  effacing  the  writing  on  old  and  less  esteemed 
manuscripts.*  The  form  of  writing  was  stiff  and 
regular  and  therefore  exceedingly  slow  and  irk- 
some. 

In  some  of  the  monasteries  the  scriptorium  was 
at  least  at  a  later  period,  conducted  more  as  a  matter 
of  commerce,  and  making  of  books  became  in  time 
very  profitable.  The  Church  continued  to  hold 
the  keys  of  knowledge  and  to  control  the  means  of 
productions ;  but  the  cloistered  cell,  where  the  monk 
or  the  layman,  who  had  a  penance  to  work  off  for  a 
grave  sin,  had  worked  in  solitude,  gave  way  to  the 
apartment  specially  set  aside,  where  many  persons 
could  work  together,  usually  under  the  direction  of 
a  librarius  or  chief  scribe.  In  the  more  carefully 
constructed  monasteries  this  apartment  was  so 
placed  as  to  adjoin  the  calefactory,  which  allowed 
the  introduction  of  hot  air,  when  needed. 

The  seriousness  with  which  the  business  of 
copying  was  considered  is  well  illustrated  by  the 
consecration  of  the  scriptorium  which  was  often 

•  Lacroix,  Paul.  "Arts  of  the  Middle  Ages."  Our  author, 
however  (vide  page  58,  note),  quotes  the  accounts  of  the  Church  of 
Norwich  to  show  that  parchments  sold  late  in  the  thirteenth  century 
at  about  i  d.  per  sheet ;  but  Putnam  and  other  writers  state  that  up 
to  that  time  it  was  a  very  costly  commodity. 


BIBLIOMANIA,  xiii 

done  in  words  which  may  be  thus  translated  : 
"  Vouchsafe,  O  Lord,  to  bless  this  work-room  of 
thy  servants,  that  all  which  they  write  therein  may 
be  comprehended  by  their  intelligence  and  realized 
in  their  work." 

While  the  work  of  the  scribes  was  largely  that 
of  copying  the  scriptures,  gospels,  and  books  of 
devotion  required  for  the  service  of  the  church, 
there  was  a  considerable  trade  in  books  of  a  more 
secular  kind.  Particularly  was  this  so  in  England. 
The  large  measure  of  attention  given  to  the  pro- 
duction of  books  of  legends  and  romances  was 
a  distinguishing  feature  of  the  literature  of  Eng- 
land at  least  three  centuries  previous  to  the  inven- 
tion of  printing.  At  about  the  twelfth  century 
and  after,  there  was  a  very  large  production  and 
sale  of  books  under  such  headings  as  chronicles, 
satires,  sermons,  works  of  science  and  medicine, 
treatises  on  style,  prose  romances  and  epics  in 
verse.  Of  course  a  large  proportion  of  these 
were  written  in  or  translated  from  the  Latin,  the 
former  indicating  a  pretty  general  knowledge  of 
that  language  among  those  who  could  buy  or 
read  books  at  all.  That  this  familiarity  with 
the  Latin  tongue  was  not  confined  to  any  par- 
ticular country  is  abundantly  shown  by  various 
authorities. 

Mr.   Merryweather,   whose  book,  as  has  been 


xiv  BIBLIOMANIA. 

intimated,  is  only  a  defense  of  bibliomania  itself  as  it 
actually  existed  in  the  middle  ages,  gives  the  reader 
but  scant  information  as  to  processes  of  book- 
making  at  that  time.  But  thanks  to  the  pains- 
taking research  of  others,  these  details  are  now 
a  part  of  the  general  knowledge  of  the  develop- 
ment of  the  book.  The  following,  taken  from  Mr. 
Theodore  De  Vinne's  Invention  of  Printing,  will, 
we  think,  be  found  interesting  : 

"  The  size  most  in  fashion  was  that  now  known 
as  the  demy  folio,  of  which  the  leaf  is  about  ten 
inches  wide  and  fifteen  inches  long,  but  smaller 
sizes  were  often  made.  The  space  to  be  occupied 
by  the  written  text  was  mapped  out  with  faint 
lines,  so  that  the  writer  could  keep  his  letters  on  a 
line,  at  even  distance  from  each  other  and  within 
the  prescribed  margin.  Each  letter  was  carefully 
drawn,  and  filled  in  or  painted  with  repeated 
touches  of  the  pen.  With  good  taste,  black  ink 
was  most  frequently  selected  for  the  text ;  red  ink 
was  used  only  for  the  more  prominent  words,  and 
the  catch-letters,  then  known  as  the  rubricated  let- 
ters. Sometimes  texts  were  written  in  blue,  green, 
purple,  gold  or  silver  inks,  but  it  was  soon  dis- 
covered that  texts  in  bright  color  were  not  so 
readable  as  texts  in  black. 

"  When  the  copyist  had  finished  his  sheet  he 
passed  it  to  the  designer,  who  sketched  the  border, 


BIBLIOMANIA.  xv 

pictures  and  initials.  The  sheet  was  then  given  to 
the  illuminator,  who  painted  it.  The  ornamentation 
of  a  mediaeval  book  of  the  first  class  is  beyond 
description  by  words  or  by  wood  cuts.  Every  inch 
of  space  was  used.  Its  broad  margins  were  filled 
with  quaint  ornaments,  sometimes  of  high  merit, 
admirably  painted  in  vivid  colors.  Grotesque  ini- 
tials, which,  with  their  flgurishes,  often  spanned 
the  full  height  of  the  page,  or  broad  bands  of 
floriated  tracery  that  occupied  its  entire  width, 
were  the  only  indications  of  changes  of  chapter  or 
subject.  In  printer's  phrase  the  composition  was 
"  close-up  and  solid  "  to  the  extreme  degree  of  com- 
pactness. The  uncommonly  free  use  of  red  ink  for 
the  smaller  initials  was  not  altogether  a  matter  of 
taste ;  if  the  page  had  been  written  entirely  in  black 
ink  it  would  have  been  unreadable  through  its 
blackness.  This  nicety  in  writing  consumed  much 
time,  but  the  mediaeval  copyist  was  seldom  governed 
by  considerations  of  time  or  expense.  It  was  of 
little  consequence  whether  the  book  he  transcribed 
would  be  finished  in  one  or  in  ten  years.  It  was 
required  only  that  he  should  keep  at  his  work 
steadily  and  do  his  best.  His  skill  is  more  to  be 
commended  than  his  taste.  Many  of  his  initials 
and  borders  were  outrageously  inappropriate  for 
the  text  for  which  they  were  designed.  The  gravest 
truths  were  hedged  in  the  most  childish  conceits. 


xvi  BIBLIOMANIA, 

Angels,  butterflies,  goblins,  clowns,  birds,  snails  and 
monkeys,  sometimes  in  artistic,  but  much  oftener 
in  grotesque  and  sometimes  in  highly  offensive 
positions  are  to  be  found  in  the  illuminated  borders 
of  copies  of  the  gospels  and  writings  of  the  fathers. 
"  The  book  was  bound  by  the  forwarder,  who 
sewed  the  leaves  and  put  them  in  a  cover  of  leather 
or  velvet ;  by  the  finisher,  who  ornamented  the 
cover  with  gilding  and  enamel.  The  illustration 
of  book  binding,  published  by  Amman  in  his  Book 
of  Trades,  puts  before  us  many  of  the  implements 
still  in  use.  The  forwarder,  with  his  customary 
apron  of  leather,  is  in  the  foreground,  making  use 
of  a  plow-knife  for  trimming  the  edges  of  a  book. 
The  lying  press,  which  rests  obliquely  against  the 
block  before  him,  contains  a  book  that  has  received 
the  operation  of  backing-up  from  a  queer  shaped 
hammer  lying  upon  the  floor.  The  workman  at 
the  end  of  the  room  is  sewing  together  the  sections 
of  a  book,  for  sewing  was  properly  regarded  as  a 
man's  work,  and  a  scientific  operation  altogether 
beyond  the  capacity  of  the  raw  seamstress.  The 
work  of  the  finisher  is  not  represented,  but  the 
brushes,  the  burnishers,  the  sprinklers  and  the  wheel- 
shaped  gilding  tools  hanging  against  the  wall 
leave  us  no  doubt  as  to  their  use.  There  is  an  air 
of  antiquity  about  everything  connected  with  this 
bookbindery  which  suggests  the  thought  that  its 


BIBLIOMANIA.  xvii 

tools  and  usages  are  much  older  than  those  of 
printing.  Chevillier  says  that  seventeen  profes- 
sional bookbinders  found  regular  employment  in 
making  up  books  for  the  University  of  Paris,  as 
early  as  1292.  Wherever  books  were  produced  in 
quantities,  bookbinding  was  set  apart  as  a  business 
distinct  from  that  of  copying. 

"  The  poor  students  who  copied  books  for  their 
own  use  were  also  obliged  to  bind  them,  which 
they  did  in  a  simple  but  efficient  manner  by  sewing 
together  the  folded  sheets,  attaching  them  to  nar- 
row parchment  bands,  the  ends  of  which  were  made 
to  pass  through  a  cover  of  stout  parchment  at  the 
joint  near  the  back.  The  ends  of  the  bands  were 
then  pasted  down  under  the  stiffening  sheet  of  the 
cover,  and  the  book  was  pressed.  Sometimes  the 
cover  was  made  flexible  by  the  omission  of  the  stif- 
fening sheet;  sometimes  the  edges  of  the  leaves 
were  protected  by  flexible  and  overhanging  flaps 
which  were  made  to  project  over  the  covers  ;  or  by 
the  insertion  in  the  covers  of  stout  leather  strings 
with  which  the  two  covers  were  tied  together. 
Ornamentation  was  entirely  neglected,  for  a  book 
of  this  character  was  made  for  use  and  not  for 
show.  These  methods  of  binding  were  mostly 
applied  to  small  books  intended  for  the  pocket; 
the  workmanship  was  rough,  but  the  binding  was 
strong  and  serviceable." 


xviii  BIBLIOMANIA. 

The  book  of  Mr.  Merryweather,  here  reprinted, 
is  thought  worthy  of  preservation  in  a  series  de- 
signed for  the  Hbrary  of  the  booklover.  Its  publi- 
cation followed  shortly  after  that  of  the  works  of 
Digby  and  Maitland,  but  shows  much  original 
research  and  familiarity  with  early  authorities  ;  and 
it  is  much  more  than  either  of  these,  or  of  any  book 
with  which  we  are  acquainted,  a  plea  in  defense  of 
bibliomania  in  the  middle  ages.  Indeed  the  charm 
of  the  book  may  be  said  to  rest  largely  upon  the 
earnestness  with  which  he  takes  up  his  self-imposed 
task.  One  may  fancy  that  after  all  he  found  it 
not  an  easy  one ;  in  fact  his  "  Conclusion  "  is  a  kind 
of  apology  for  not  having  made  out  a  better  case. 
But  this  he  believes  he  has  proven,  "  that  with  all 
their  superstition,  with  all  their  ignorance,  their 
blindness  to  philosophic  light — the  monks  of  old 
were  hearty  lovers  of  books ;  that  they  encouraged 
learning,  fostered  it,  and  transcribed  repeatedly  the 
books  which  they  had  rescued  from  the  destruction 
of  war  and  time  ;  and  so  kindly  cherished  and  hus- 
banded them  as  intellectual  food  for  posterity. 
Such  being  the  case,  let  our  hearts  look  charitably 
upon  them  ;  and  whilst  we  pity  them  for  their 
superstition,  or  blame  them  for  their  pious  frauds, 
love  them  as  brother  men  and  workers  in  the  mines 
of  literature." 

Of  the  author  himself  little  can  be  learned.     A 


BIBLIOMANIA,  xix 

diligent  search  revealed  little  more  than  the  entry 
in  the  London  directory  which,  in  various  years  from 
1840  to  1850,  gives  his  occupation  as  that  of 
bookseller,  at  14  King  Street,  Holborn.  Indeed 
this  is  shown  by  the  imprint  of  the  title-page  of 
Bibliomania^  which  was  published  in  1849.  ^^ 
published  during  the  same  year  Dies  Dominiccs^ 
and  in  1850  Glimmerings  in  the  Dark,  and  Lives 
and  Anecdotes  of  Misers.  The  latter  has  been 
immortalized  by  Charles  Dickens  as  one  of  the 
books  bought  at  the  bookseller's  shop  by  Boffin, 
the  Golden  Dustman,  and  which  was  read  to  him 
by  the  redoubtable  Silas  Wegg  during  Sunday 
evenings  at  "  Boffin's  Bower."  * 

*  Dickens's  Mutual  Friend. 


BIBLIOMANIA 


IN 


THE    MIDDLE    AGES. 


CHAPTER   I. 

Introductory    Remarks — Monachism —  Book    Des- 
troyers— Effects   of  the  Reformation  on 
Monkish   Learning,    etc. 

N  recent  times,  in  spite  of  all  those 
outcries  which  have  been  so  repeat- 
edly  raised  against  the  illiterate 
7^  ^F  state  of  the  dark  ages,  many  and 
j^/fcj  \^y^^^  valuable  efforts  have  been  made 
towards  a  just  elucidation  of  those 
monkish  days.  These  labors  have  produced  evi- 
dence of  what  few  anticipated,  and  some  even  now 
deny,  viz.,  that  here  and  there  great  glimmerings 
of  learning  are  perceivable  ;  and  although  debased, 


2  BIBLIOMANIA. 

and  often  barbarous  too,  they  were  not  quite  so 
bad  as  historians  have  usually  proclaimed  them.  It 
may  surprise  some,  however,  that  an  attempt  should 
be  made  to  prove  that,  in  the  olden  time  in  "merrie 
Englande,"  a  passion  which  Dibdin  has  christened 
Bibliomania,  existed  then,  and  that  there  were  many 
cloistered  bibliophiles  as  warm  and  enthusiastic  in 
book  collecting  as  the  Doctor  himself.  But  I  must 
here  crave  the  patience  of  the  reader,  and  ask  him 
to  refrain  from  denouncing  what  he  may  deem  a 
rash  and  futile  attempt,  till  he  has  perused  the 
volume  and  thought  well  upon  the  many  facts 
contained  therein.  I  am  aware  that  many  of  these 
facts  are  known  to  all,  but  some,  I  believe,  are 
familiar  only  to  the  antiquary — the  lover  of  musty 
parchments  and  the  cobwebbed  chronicles  of  a 
monastic  age.  I  have  endeavored  to  bring  these 
facts  together — to  connect  and  string  them  into  a 
continuous  narrative,  and  to  extract  from  them 
some  light  to  guide  us  in  forming  an  opinion  on  the 
state  of  literature  in  those  ages  of  darkness  and 
obscurity  ;  and  here  let  it  be  understood  that  I 
merely  wish  to  give  a  fact  as  history  records  it.  I 
will  not  commence  by  saying  the  Middle  Ages  were 
dark  and  miserably  ignorant,  and  search  for  some 
poor  isolated  circumstance  to  prove  it ;  I  will  not 
affirm  that  this  was  pre-eminently  the  age  in  which 
real  piety  flourished  and  literature  was  fondly  cher- 
ished, and  strive  to  find  all  those  facts  which  show 
its  learning,  purposely  neglecting  those  which  dis- 
play its  unlettered  ignorance  :  nor  let  it  be  deemed 
ostentation  when  I  say  that  the  literary  anecdotes 
and   bookish   memoranda   now   submitted  to   the 


BIBLIOMANIA.  3 

reader  have  been  taken,  where  such  a  course  was 
practicable,  from  the  original  sources,  and  the  refer- 
ences to  the  authorities  from  whence  they  are  de- 
rived have  been  personally  consulted  and  compared. 
That  the  learning  of  the  Middle  Ages  has  been 
carelessly  represented  there  can  be  little  doubt : 
our  finest  writers  in  the  paths  of  history  have  em- 
ployed their  pens  in  denouncing  it ;  some  have 
allowed  difference  of  opinion  as  regards  ecclesias- 
tical policy  to  influence  their  conclusions ;  and 
because  the  poor  scribes  were  monks,  the  most 
licentious  principles,  the  most  dismal  ignorance  and 
the  most  repulsive  crimes  have  been  attributed  to 
them.  If  the  monks  deserved  such  reproaches  from 
posterity,  they  have  received  no  quarter ;  if  they 
possessed  virtues  as  christians,  and  honorable  sen- 
timents as  men,  they  have  met  with  no  reward  in 
the  praise  or  respect  of  this  liberal  age :  they  were 
monks !  superstitious  priests  and  followers  of  Rome! 
What  good  could  come  of  them  ?  It  cannot  be 
denied  that  there  were  crimes  perpetrated  by  men 
aspiring  to  a  state  of  holy  sanctity  ;  there  are 
instances  to  be  met  with  of  priests  violating  the 
rules  of  decorum  and  morality ;  of  monks  revelling 
in  the  dissipating  pleasures  of  sensual  enjoyments, 
and  of  nuns  whose  frail  humanity  could  not  main- 
tain the  purity  of  their  virgin  vows.  But  these 
instances  are  too  rare  to  warrant  the  slanders  and 
scurrility  that  historians  have  heaped  upon  them. 
And  when  we  talk  of  the  sensuality  of  the  monks, 
of  their  gross  indulgences  and  corporeal  ease,  we 
surely  do  so  without  discrimination  ;  for  when  we 
speak  of  the  middle  ages  thus,  our  thoughts  are 


4  BIBLIOMANIA. 

dwelling  on  the  sixteenth  century,  its  mocking  piety 
and  superstitious  absurdity  ;  but  in  the  olden  time  of 
monastic  rule,  before  monachism  had  burst  its  ancient 
boundaries,  there  was  surely  nothing  physically  at- 
tractive in  the  austere  and  dull  monotony  of  a 
cloistered  life.  Look  at  the  monk ;  mark  his  hard, 
dry  studies,  and  his  midnight  prayers,  his  painful 
fasting  and  mortifying  of  the  flesh ;  what  can  we 
find  in  this  to  tempt  the  epicure  or  the  lover  of 
indolence  and  sloth  ?  They  were  fanatics,  blind  and 
credulous — I  grant  it.  They  read  gross  legends, 
and  put  faith  in  traditionary  lies — I  grant  it ;  but  do 
not  say,  for  history  will  not  prove  it,  that  in  the 
middle  ages  the  monks  were  wine  bibbers  and 
slothful  gluttons.  But  let  not  the  Protestant  reader 
be  too  hastily  shocked.  I  am  not  defending  the 
monastic  system,  or  the  corruption  of  the  cloister — 
far  from  it.  I  would  see  the  usefulness  of  man 
made  manifest  to  the  world  ;  but  the  measure  of  my 
faith  teaches  charity  and  forgiveness,  and  I  can  find 
in  the  functions  of  the  monk  much  that  must  have 
been  useful  in  those  dark  days  of  feudal  tyranny 
and  lordly  despotism.  We  much  mistake  the  influ- 
ence of  the  monks  by  mistaking  their  position  ;  we 
regard  them  as  a  class,  but  forget  from  whence  they 
sprang ;  there  was  nothing  aristocratic  about  them, 
as  their  constituent  parts  sufficiently  testify ;  they 
were,  perhaps,  the  best  representatives  of  the  people 
that  could  be  named,  being  derived  from  all  classes 
of  society.  Thus  Offa,  the  Saxon  king,  and  Csedman, 
the  rustic  herdsman,  were  both  monks.  These  are 
examples  by  no  means  rare,  and  could  easily  be 
multiplied.     Such   being   the   case,    could   not  the 


BIBLIOMANIA.  5 

monks  more  readily  feel  and  sympathize  with  all, 
and  more  clearly  discern  the  frailties  of  their  brother 
man,  and  by  kind  admonition  or  stern  reproof, 
mellow  down  the  ferocity  of  a  Saxon  nature,  or  the 
proud  heart  of  a  Norman  tyrant  ?  But  our  object  is 
not  to  analyze  the  social  influence  of  Monachism  in 
the  middle  ages  :  much  might  be  said  against  it,  and 
many  evils  traced  to  the  sad  workings  of  its  evil 
spirit,  but  still  withal  something  may  be  said  in 
favor  of  it,  and  those  who  regard  its  influence  in 
those  days  alone  may  find  more  to  admire  and  defend 
than  they  expected,  or  their  Protestant  prejudices 
like  to  own. 

But,  leaving  these  things,  I  have  only  to  deal 
with  such  remains  as  relate  to  the  love  of  books  in 
those  times.  I  would  show  the  means  then  in 
existence  of  acquiring  knowledge,  the  scarcity  or 
plentitude  of  books,  the  extent  of  their  libraries, 
and  the  rules  regulating  them  ;  and  bring  forward 
those  facts  which  tend  to  display  the  general 
routine  of  a  literary  monk,  or  the  prevalence  of 
Bibliomania  in  those  days. 

It  is  well  known  that  the  great  national  and 
private  libraries  of  Europe  possess  immense  collec- 
tions of  manuscripts,  which  were  produced  and 
transcribed  in  the  monasteries,  during  the  middle 
ages,  thousands  there  are  in  the  rich  alcoves  of  the 
Vatican  at  Rome,  unknown  save  to  a  choice  and 
favored  few ;  thousands  there  are  in  the  royal 
library  of  France,  and  thousands  too  reposing  on 
the  dusty  shelves  of  the  Bodleian  and  Cottonian 
libraries  in  England ;  and  yet,  these  numbers  are 
but  a  small  portion — a  mere  relic — of  the   intel- 


6  BIBLIOMANIA. 

lectual  productions  of  a  past  and  obscure  age.* 
The  barbarians,  who  so  frequently  convulsed  the 
more  civilized  portions  of  Europe,  found  a  morbid 
pleasure  in  destroying  those  works  which  bore 
evidence  to  the  mental  superiority  of  their  enemies. 
In  England,  the  Saxons,  the  Danes,  and  the 
Normans  were  each  successively  the  destroyers  of 
literary  productions.  The  Saxon  Chronicle,  that 
invaluable  repository  of  the  events  of  so  many  years, 
bears  ample  testimony  to  numerous  instances  of  the 
loss  of  libraries  and  works  of  art,  from  fire,  or  by 
the  malice  of  designing  foes.  At  some  periods,  so 
general  was  this  destruction,  so  unquenchable  the 
rapacity  of  those  who  caused  it,  that  instead  of 
feeling  surprised  at  the  manuscripts  of  those  ages 
being  so  few  and  scanty,  we  have  cause  rather  to 
wonder  that  so  many  have  been  preserved.  For 
even  the  numbers  which  escaped  the  hands  of  the 
early  and  unlettered  barbarians  met  with  an  equally 
ignominious  fate  from  those  for  whom  it  would  be 
impossible  to  hold  up  the  darkness  of  their  age 
as  a  plausible  excuse  for  the  commission  of  this 
egregious  folly.  These  men  over  whose  sad  deeds 
the  bibliophile  sighs  with  mournful  regret,  were 
those  who  carried  out  the  Reformation,  so  glorious 
in  its  results  ;  but  the  righteousness  of  the  means 
by  which  those  results  were  effected  are  very 
equivocal  indeed.  When  men  form  themselves  into 
a  faction  and  strive  for  the  accomplishment  of  one 
purpose,  criminal  deeds  are  perpetrated   with   im- 

*  The  sad  page  in  the  Annals  of  Literary  History  recording  the 
destruction  of  books  and  MSS.  fully  prove  this  assertion.  In  France, 
in  the  year  1790,  4,194,000  volumes  were  burnt  belonging  to  the 
suppressed  monasteries,  about  25,000  of  these  were  manuscripts. 


BIBLIOMANIA,  7 

punity,  which,  individually  they  would  blush  and 
scorn  to  do  ;  they  feel  no  direct  responsibility,  no 
personal  restraint ;  and,  such  as  possess  fierce 
passions,  under  the  cloak  of  an  organized  body, 
give  them  vent  and  gratification  ;  and  those  whose 
better  feelings  lead  them  to  contemplate  upon  these 
things  content  themselves  with  the  conclusion,  that 
out  of  evil  cometh  good. 

The  noble  art  of  printing  was  unable,  with  all 
its  rapid  movements,  to  rescue  from  destruction  the 
treasures  of  the  monkish  age ;  the  advocates  of  the 
Reformation  eagerly  sought  for  and  as  eagerly 
destroyed  those  old  popish  volumes,  doubtless 
there  was  much  folly,  much  exaggerated  supersti- 
tion pervading  them  ;  but  there  was  also  some  truth, 
a  few  facts  worth  knowing,  and  perhaps  a  little 
true  piety  also,  and  it  would  have  been  no  difficult 
matter  to  have  discriminated  between  the  good  and 
the  bad.  But  the  careless  grants  of  a  licentious 
monarch  conferred  a  monastery  on  a  court  favorite 
or  political  partizan  without  one  thought  for  the 
preservation  of  its  contents.  It  is  true  a  few  years 
after  the  dissolution  of  these  houses,  the  industrious 
Leland  was  appointed  to  search  and  rummage  over 
their  libraries  and  to  preserve  any  relic  worthy  of 
such  an  honor ;  but  it  was  too  late,  less  learned 
hands  had  rifled  those  parchment  collections  long 
ago,  mutilated  their  finest  volumes  by  cutting  out 
with  childish  pleasure  the  illuminations  with  which 
they  were  adorned  ;  tearing  off  the  bindings  for  the 
gold  claps  which  protected  the  treasures  within,* 

*  "About  this  time  (Feb.  25,  1550)  the  Council  book  mentions 
the  king's  sending  a  letter  for  the  purging  his  library  at  Westminster. 


8  BIBLIOMANIA. 

and  chopping  up  huge  foHos  as  fuel  for  their  blazing 
hearths,  and  immense  collections  were  sold  as  waste 
paper.  Bale,  a  strenuous  opponent  of  the  monks, 
thus  deplores  the  loss  of  their  books  :  "  Never  had 
we  bene  offended  for  the  losse  of  our  lybraryes 
beynge  so  many  in  nombre  and  in  so  desolate 
places  for  the  moste  parte,  yf  the  chief  monuments 
and  moste  notable  workes  of  our  excellent  wryters 
had  bene  reserved,  yf  there  had  bene  in  every  shyre 
of  Englande  but  one  solemyne  library  to  the  pre- 
servacyon  of  those  noble  workers,  and  preferrement 
of  good  learnynges  in  oure  posteryte  it  had  bene 
yet  somewhat.  But  to  destroye  all  without  con- 
syderacion,  is  and  wyll  be  unto  Englande  for  ever  a 
most  horryble  infamy  amonge  the  grave  senyours 
of  other  nations.  A  grete  nombre  of  them  whych 
purchased  those  superstycyose  mansyons  reserved 
of  those  lybrarye  bokes,  some  to  serve  theyr  jakes, 
some  to  scoure  theyr  candelstyckes,  and  some  to 
rubbe  theyr  bootes ;  some  they  solde  to  the  grossers 
and  sope  sellers,  and  some  they  sent  over  see  to  the 
bokebynders,*  not  in  small  nombre,  but  at  tymes 
whole  shippes  ful.   I  know  a  merchant  man,  whyche 

The  persons  are  not  named,  but  the  business  was  to  cull  out  all 
superstitious  books,  as  missals,  legends,  and  such  like,  and  to  deliver 
the  garniture  of  the  books,  being  either  gold  or  silver,  to  Sir  Anthony 
Aucher.  These  books  were  many  of  them  plated  with  gold  and 
silver  and  curiously  embossed.  This,  as  far  as  we  can  collect,  was 
the  superstition  that  destroyed  them.  Here  avarice  had  a  very  thin 
disguise,  and  the  courtiers  discovered  of  what  spirit  they  were  to  a 
remarkable  degree." — Collier's  Eccle.  History,  vol.  ii.  p.  307. 

*  Any  one  who  can  inspect  a  library  of  ancient  books  will  find 
proof  of  this.  A  collection  of  vellum  scraps  which  I  have  derived 
from  these  sources  are  very  exciting  to  a  bibliomaniac,  a  choice  line 
so  abruptly  broken,  a  monkish  or  classical  verse  so  cruelly  mutilated  ! 
render  an  inspection  of  this  odd  collection,  a  tantalizing  amusement. 


BIBLIOMANIA.  9 

shall  at  thys  tyme  be  nameless,  that  boughte  the 
contents  of  two  noble  lybraryes  for  xl  shyllyngs 
pryce,  a  shame  is  it  to  be  spoken.  Thys  stuffe  hathe 
he  occupyed  in  the  stide  of  graye  paper  for  the 
space  of  more  than  these  ten  years,  and  yet  hath 
store  ynough  for  as  many  years  to  come.  A  pro- 
dyguose  example  is  this,  and  to  be  abhorred  of  all 
men  who  love  theyr  natyon  as  they  shoulde  do."* 

However  pernicious  the  Roman  religion  might 
have  been  in  its  practice,  it  argues  little  to  the 
honor  of  the  reformers  to  have  used  such  means  as 
this  to  effect  its  cure  ;  had  they  merely  destroyed 
those  productions  connected  with  the  controversies 
of  the  day,  we  might  perhaps  have  excused  it,  on 
the  score  of  party  feeling ;  but  those  who  were  com- 
missioned to  visit  the  public  libraries  of  the  kingdom 
were  often  men  of  prejudiced  intellects  and  short- 
sighted wisdom,  and  it  frequently  happened  that  an 
ignorant  and  excited  mob  became  the  executioners 
of  whole  collections.f  It  would  be  impossible  now 
to  estimate  the  loss.  Manuscripts  of  ancient  and 
classic  date  would  in  their  hands  receive  no  more 

*  Bale's  Leland's  Laboryouse  Journey,  Preface. 

t  The  works  of  the  Schoolmen,  viz.:  of  P.  Lombard,  T.  Aquinas, 
Scotus  and  his  followers  and  critics  also,  and  such  that  had  popish 
scholars  in  them  they  cast  out  of  all  college  libraries  and  private 
studies. — IVood's  Hist.  Oxon.,  vol.  i.  b.  i.  p.  108.  And  "least 
their  impiety  and  foolishness  in  this  act  should  be  further  wanting, 
they  brought  it  to  pass  that  certain  rude  young  men  should  carry 
this  great  spoil  of  books  about  the  city  on  biers,  which  being  so  done, 
to  set  them  down  in  the  common  market  place,  and  then  burn  them, 
to  the  sorrow  of  many,  as  well  as  of  the  Protestants  as  of  the  other 
party.  This  was  by  them  styled  'the  funeral  of  Scotus  the  Scotists.' 
So  that  at  this  time  and  all  this  king's  reign  was  seldom  seen  any- 
thing in  the  universities  but  books  of  poetry,  grammar,  idle  songs, 
and  frivolous  stuff." — Ibid.,  Wood  is  referring  to  the  reign  of 
Edward  VI. 


10  BIBLIOMANIA. 

respect  than  some  dry  husky  foHo  on  ecclesiastical 
policy  ;  indeed,  they  often  destroyed  the  works  of 
their  own  party  through  sheer  ignorance.  In  a 
letter  sent  by  Dr.  Cox  to  William  Paget,  Secretary, 
he  writes  that  the  proclamation  for  burning  books 
had  been  the  occasion  of  much  hurt.  "  For  New 
Testaments  and  Bibles  (not  condemned  by  procla- 
mation) have  been  burned,  and  that,  out  of  parish 
churches  and  good  men's  houses.  They  have  burned 
innumerable  of  the  king's  majesties  books  concern- 
ing our  religion  lately  set  forth."*  The  ignorant 
thus  delighted  to  destroy  that  which  they  did  not 
understand,  and  the  factional  spirit  of  the  more 
enlightened  would  not  allow  them  to  make  one 
effort  for  the  preservation  of  those  valuable  relics 
of  early  English  literature,  which  crowded  the 
shelves  of  the  monastic  libraries  ;  the  sign  of  the 
cross,  the  use  of  red  letters  on  the  title  page,  the 
illuminations  representing  saints,  or  the  diagrams 
and  circles  of  a  mathematical  nature,  were  at  all 
times  deemed  sufficient  evidence  of  their  popish 
origin  and  fitness  for  the  flames.f 

When  we  consider  the  immense  number  of  MSS. 
thus  destroyed,  we  cannot  help  suspecting  that,  if 
they  had  been  carefully  preserved  and  examined, 
many  valuable  and  original  records  would  have  been 
discovered.  The  catalogues  of  old  monastic  estab- 
lishments, although  containing  a  great  proportion 
of  works  on  divine  and  ecclesiastical  learning,  testify 

•  Wood's  Hist.  Oxon,  b.  i.  p.  8i. 

t  "  Gutch  has  printed  in  his  *  Collectiana'  an  order  from  the 
Queen's  commissioners  to  destroy  all  capes,  vestments,  albes,  missals, 
books,  crosses,  and  such  other  idolatrous  and  superstitious  monu- 
ments whatsoever.' — vol.  ii.  p.  280." 


BIBLIOMANIA.  ii 

that  the  monks  did  not  confine  their  studies  exclu- 
sively to  legendary  tales  or  superstitious  missals, 
but  that  they  also  cultivated  a  taste  for  classical  and 
general  learning.  Doubtless,  in  the  ruin  of  the 
sixteenth  century,  many  original  works  of  monkish 
authors  perished,  and  the  splendor  of  the  transcript 
rendered  it  still  more  liable  to  destruction  ;  but  I 
confess,  as  old  Fuller  quaintly  says,  that  "there 
were  many  volumes  full  fraught  with  superstition 
which,  notwithstanding,  might  be  useful  to  learned 
men,  except  any  will  deny  apothecaries  the  privilege 
of  keeping  poison  in  their  shops,  when  they  can 
make  antidotes  of  them.  But  besides  this,  what 
beautiful  bibles !  Rare  fathers  !  Subtle  schoolmen  ! 
Useful  historians  !  Ancient !  Middle  !  Modern  ! 
What  painful  comments  were  here  amongst  them  ! 
What  monuments  of  mathematics  all  massacred 
together  !  "* 

More  than  a  cart  load  of  manuscripts  were  taken 
away  from  Merton  College  and  destroyed,  and  a 
vast  number  from  the  Baliol  and  New  Colleges, 
Oxford  f ;  but  these  instances  might  be  infinitely 
multiplied,  so  terrible  were  those  intemperate  out- 
rages. All  this  tends  to  enforce  upon  us  the 
necessity  of  using  considerable  caution  in  forming 
an  opinion  of  the  nature  and  extent  of  learning 
prevalent  during  those  ages  which  preceded  the 
discovery  of  the  art  of  printing. 

•  Fuller's  Church  History,  b.  vi.  p.  335. 
f  Wood's  Oxon,  vol.  i.  b.  i.  p.  107 


CHAPTER  II. 


Duties  of  the  monkish  librarian. — Rules  of  the 
library.- — Lending  books. — Books  allowed  the 
monks  for  private  reading, — Ridiculous  signs  for 
books. — How  the  libraries  were  supported. — A 
monkish  blessing  on  books^  etc. 

N  this  chapter  I  shall  proceed  to  in- 
quire into  the  duties  of  the  monkish 
amanuensis,  and  show  by  what  laws 
and  regulations  the  monastic  libra- 
ries were  governed.  The  mono- 
tonous habits  of  a  cloistered  biblio- 
phile will,  perhaps,  appear  dry  and  fastidious,  but 
still  it  is  curious  and  interesting  to  observe  how 
carefully  the  monks  regarded  their  vellum  tomes, 
how  indefatigably  they  worked  to  increase  their 
stores,  and  how  eagerly  they  sought  for  books. 
But  besides  being  regarded  as  a  literary  curiosity, 
the  subject  derives  importance  by  the  light  it  throws 
on  the  state  of  learning  in  those  dark  and  "  book- 
less "  days,  and  the  illustrations  gleaned  in  this  way 
fully  compensate  for  the  tediousness  of  the  research. 
As  a  bibliophile  it  is  somewhat  pleasing  to  trace 


14  BIBLIOMANIA. 

a  deep  book  passion  growing  up  in  the  barrenness 
of  the  cloister,  and  to  find  in  some  cowled  monk  a 
bibliomaniac  as  warm  and  enthusiastic  in  his  way 
as  the  renowned  "  Atticus,"  or  the  noble  Roxburghe, 
of  more  recent  times.  It  is  true  we  can  draw  no 
comparison  between  the  result  of  their  respective 
labors.  The  hundreds,  which  in  the  old  time  were 
deemed  a  respectable  if  not  an  extensive  collection, 
would  look  insignificant  beside  the  ostentatious 
array  of  modern  libraries. 

But  the  very  tenor  of  a  monastic  life  compelled 
the  monk  to  seek  the  sweet  yet  silent  companion- 
ship of  books  ;  the  rules  of  his  order  and  the  regu- 
lations of  his  fraternity  enforced  the  strictest  silence 
in  the  execution  of  his  daily  and  never-ceasing 
duties.  Attending  mass,  singing  psalms,  and  mid- 
night prayers,  were  succeeded  by  mass,  psalms  and 
prayers  in  one  long  undeviating  round  of  yearly 
obligations ;  the  hours  intervening  between  these 
holy  exercises  were  dull  and  tediously  insupportable 
if  unoccupied.  Conversation  forbidden,  secular 
amusements  denounced,  yet  idleness  reproached, 
what  could  the  poor  monk  seek  as  a  relief  in  this 
distress  but  the  friendly  book ;  the  willing  and 
obedient  companion  of  every  one  doomed  to  lonely 
hours  and  dismal  solitude  ? 

The  pride  and  glory  of  a  monastery  was  a  well 
stored  library,  which  was  committed  to  the  care  of 
the  armarian,  and  with  him  rested  all  the  responsi- 
bility of  its  preservation.  According  to  the  Con- 
suetudines  Canonicorum  Regularium,  it  was  his  duty 
to  have  all  the  books  of  the  monastery  in  his  keeping 
catalogued  and  separately  marked  with  their  proper 


BIBLIOMANIA.  15 

names.*  Some  of  these  old  catalogues  have  been 
preserved,  and,  viewed  as  bibliographical  remains 
of  the  middle  ages,  are  of  considerable  importance  ; 
indeed,  we  cannot  form  a  correct  idea  of  the  litera- 
ture of  those  remote  times  without  them.  Many 
productions  of  authors  are  recorded  in  these  brief 
catalogues  whose  former  existence  is  only  known 
to  us  by  these  means.  There  is  one  circumstance 
in  connexion  with  them  that  must  not  be  forgotten  : 
instead  of  enumerating  all  the  works  which  each 
volume  contained,  they  merely  specified  the  first, 
so  that  a  catalogue  of  fifty  or  a  hundred  volumes 
might  probably  have  contained  nearly  double  that 
number  of  distinct  works.  I  have  seen  MSS.  for- 
merly belonging  to  monasteries,  which  have  been 
catalogued  in  this  way,  containing  four  or  five 
others,  besides  the  one  mentioned.  Designed  rather 
to  identify  the  book  than  to  describe  the  contents 
of  each  volume,  they  wrote  down  the  first  word  or 
two  of  the  second  leaf — this  was  the  most  prevalent 
usage  ;  but  they  often  adopted  other  means,  some- 
times giving  a  slight  notice  of  the  works  which  a 
volume  contained  ;  others  took  the  precaution  of 
noting  down  the  last  word  of  the  last  leaf  but  one,f 
a  great  advantage,  as  the  monkish  student  could 
more  easily  detect  at  a  glance  whether  the  volume 
was  perfect.  The  armarian  was,  moreover,  par- 
ticularly enjoined  to  inspect  with  scrupulous  care 
the  more  ancient  volumes,  lest  the  moth-worms 
should  have  got  at  them,  or  they  had  become  cor- 

*  Cap.  xxi.  Martene  de  Antiquis  Ecclesiae  Ritibus,  torn.  iii. 
p.  262. 

t  See  Catalogue  of  Hulne  Abbey,  Library  MS.  Harleian.  No. 
3897. 


i6  BIBLIOMANIA. 

rupt  or  mutilated,  and,  if  such  were  the  case,  he 
was  with  great  care  to  restore  them.  Probably  the 
armarian  was  also  the  bookbinder  to  the  monastery 
in  ordinary  cases,  for  he  is  here  directed  to  cover 
the  volumes  with  tablets  of  wood,  that  the  inside 
may  be  preserved  from  moisture,  and  the  parch- 
ment from  the  injurious  effects  of  dampness.  The 
different  orders  of  books  were  to  be  kept  separate 
from  one  another,  and  conveniently  arranged  ;  not 
squeezed  too  tight,  lest  it  should  injure  or  confuse 
them,  but  so  placed  that  they  might  be  easily  dis- 
tinguished, and  those  who  sought  them  might  find 
them  without  delay  or  impediment.*  Bibliomaniacs 
have  not  been  remarkable  for  their  memory  or 
punctuality,  and  in  the  early  times  the  borrower 
was  often  forgetful  to  return  the  volume  within  the 
*  specified  time.  To  guard  against  this,  many  rules 
were  framed,  nor  was  the  armarian  allowed  to  lend 
the  books,  even  to  neighboring  monasteries,  unless 
he  received  a  bond  or  promise  to  restore  them 
within  a  certain  time,  and  if  the  person  was  entirely 
unknown,  a  book  of  equal  value  was  required  as  a 
security  for  its  safe  return.  In  all  cases  the  armarian 
was  instructed  to  make  a  short  memorandum  of  the 
name  of  the  book  which  he  had  lent  or  received. 
The  "great  and  precious  books"  were  subject  to 
still  more  stringent  rules,  and  although  under  the 
conservation  of  the  librarian,  he  had  not  the  privi- 
lege of  lending  them  to  any  one  without  the  distinct 
permission   of   the   abbot*     This  was,   doubtless, 

*  Martene  de  Antiq.  Eccle.  Rit.,  torn  iii.  p.  263. 
"  Ibid.     Ingulphus  tells  us  that  the  same  rule  was  observed  in 
Croyland  Abbey. — Apud  Gale,  p.  104. 


BIBLIOMANIA. 


17 


practised  by  all  the  monastic  libraries,  for  all  gen- 
erously lent  one  another  their  books.  In  a  collec- 
tion of  chapter  orders  of  the  prior  and  convent  of 
Durham,  bearing  date  1235,  it  is  evident  that  a 
similar  rule  was  observed  there,  which  they  were 
not  to  depart  from  except  at  the  desire  of  the 
bishop.*  According  to  the  constitutions  for  the 
government  of  the  Abingdon  monastery,  the  library 
was  under  the  care  of  the  Cantor,  and  all  the  writ- 
ings of  the  church  were  consigned  to  his  keeping. 
He  was  not  allowed  to  part  with  the  books  or  lend 
them  without  a  sufficient  deposit  as  a  pledge  for 
their  safe  return,  except  to  persons  of  consequence 
and  repute.f  This  was  the  practice  at  a  much  later 
period.  When  that  renowned  bibliomaniac,  Richard 
de  Bury,  wrote  his  delightful  little  book  called 
Philobiblon,  the  same  rules  were  strictly  in  force. 
With  respect  to  the  lending  of  books,  his  own 
directions  are  that,  if  any  one  apply  for  a  particular 
volume,  the  librarian  was  to  carefully  consider 
whether  the  library  contained  another  copy  of  it ; 
if  so,  he  was  at  liberty  to  lend  the  book,  taking 
care,  however,  that  he  obtained  a  security  which 
was  to  exceed  the  value  of  the  loan  ;  they  were  at 
the  same  time  to  make  a  memorandum  in  writing 
of  the  name  of  the  book,  and  the  nature  of  the 
security  deposited  for  it,  with  the  name  of  the 
party  to  whom  it  was  lent,  with  that  of  the  officer 
or  librarian  who  delivered  it.  J 

We  learn  by  the  canons  before  referred  to,  that 

*  Marked  b.  iv.  26.     Surtee  Publications,  vol.  i.  p.  121. 
t  Const,  admiss.  Abbat,  et  gubernnatione  Monast.    Abendum 
Cottonian  M.S.  Claudius,  b.  vi.  p.  194. 

X  Philobiblon,  4to,  Oxon,  1599,  chap.  xix. 


i8  BIBLIOMANIA. 

the  superintendence  of  all  the  writing  and  tran- 
scribing, whether  in  or  out  of  the  monastery,  be- 
longed to  the  ofhce  of  the  armarian,  and  that  it  was 
his  duty  to  provide  the  scribes  with  parchment  and 
all  things  necessary  for  their  work,  and  to  agree 
upon  the  price  with  those  whom  he  employed.  The 
monks  who  were  appointed  to  write  in  the  cloisters 
he  supplied  with  copies  for  transcription ;  and  that 
no  time  might  be  wasted,  he  was  to  see  that  a 
good  supply  was  kept  up.  No  one  was  to  give  to 
another  what  he  himself  had  been  ordered  to 
write,  or  presume  to  do  anything  by  his  own  will 
or  inclination.  Nor  was  it  seemly  that  the  ar- 
marian even  should  give  any  orders  for  transcripts 
to  be  made  without  first  receiving  the  permission 
of  his  superior.* 

We  here  catch  a  glimpse  of  the  quiet  life  of  a 
monkish  student,  who  labored  with  this  monoton- 
ous regularity  to  amass  his  little  library.  If  we 
dwell  on  these  scraps  of  information,  we  shall  dis- 
cover some  marks  of  a  love  of  learning  among 
them,  and  the  liberality  they  displayed  in  lending 
their  books  to  each  other  is  a  pleasing  trait  to 
dwell  upon.  They  unhesitatingly  imparted  to 
others  the  knowledge  they  acquired  by  their  own 
study  with  a  brotherly  frankness  and  generosity 
well  becoming  the  spirit  of  a  student.  This  they 
did  by  extensive  correspondence  and  the  tempo- 
rary exchange  of  their  books.     The  system  of  loan, 

*  Martene  de  Ant.  Eccl.  Ribibus,  torn.  iii.  p.  263.  For  an  in- 
attention to  this  the  Council  of  Soissons,  in  1121,  ordered  some 
transcripts  of  Abelard's  works  to  be  burnt,  and  severely  reproved  the 
author  for  his  unpardonable  neglect.  — Histoire  Littiraire  de  la 
France^  torn.  ix.  p.  28. 


BIBLIOMANIA.  19 

which  they  in  this  manner  carried  on  to  a  con- 
siderable extent,  is  an  important  feature  in  con- 
nection with  our  subject ;  innumerable  and  inter- 
esting instances  of  this  may  be  found  in  the 
monastic  registers,  and  the  private  letters  of  the 
times.  The  cheapness  of  literary  productions  of 
the  present  age  render  it  an  absolute  waste  of 
time  to  transcribe  a  whole  volume,  and  except  with 
books  of  great  scarcity  we  seldom  think  of  bor- 
rowing or  lending  one ;  having  finished  its  perusal 
we  place  it  on  the  shelf  and  in  future  regard  it  as 
a  book  of  reference ;  but  in  those  days  one  volum«-v 
did  the  work  of  twenty.  It  was  lent  to  a  neigh- 
boring monastery,  and  this  constituted  its  publi- 
cation ;  for  each  monastery  thus  favored,  by  the  aid 
perhaps  of  some  half  dozen  scribes,  added  a  copy 
to  their  own  library,  and  it  was  often  stipulated 
that  on  the  return  of  the  original  a  correct  dupli- 
cate should  accompany  it,  as  a  remuneration  to  its 
author.  Nor  was  the  volume  allowed  to  remain 
unread ;  it  was  recited  aloud  at  meals,  or  when 
otherwise  met  together,  to  the  whole  community. 
We  shall  do  well  to  bear  this  in  mind,  and  not 
hastily  judge  of  the  number  of  students  by  a  com- 
parison with  the  number  of  their  books.  But  it 
was  not  always  a  mere  single  volume  that  the 
monks  lent  from  their  library.  Hunter  has  printed* 
a  list  of  books  lent  by  the  Convent  of  Henton, 
A.  D.  1343,  to  a  neighboring  monastery,  containing 
twenty  volumes.  The  engagement  to  restore  these 
books  was  formally  drawn  up  and  sealed. 

In  the  monasteries  the  first  consideration  was 

*  Catalogues  of  Monastic  Libraries,  pp.  16,  17. 


20  BIBLIOMANIA. 

to  see  that  the  library  was  well  stored  with  those 
books  necessary  for  the  performance  of  the  various 
offices  of  the  church ,  but  besides  these  the  library 
ought,  according  to  established  rules,  to  contain  for 
the  "  edification  of  the  brothers  "  such  as  were  fit  and 
needful  to  be  consulted  in  common  study.     The 
Bible  and  great  expositors  ;  Bibliothecce  et  majores 
expositores,  books  of  martyrs,  lives  of  saints,  homi- 
,   lies,  etc.;*  these  and  other  large  books  the  monks 
/    were  allowed  to  take  and  study  in  private,  but  the 
/      smaller  ones  they  could  only  study  in  the  library, 
/       lest  they  should  be  lost  or  mislaid.     This  was  also 
j        the   case    with    respect   to    the   rare   and    choice 
\       volumes.     When  the  armarian  gave  out  books  to 
\       the  monks   he  made  a  note  of   their  nature,  and 
\      took  an  exact  account  of  their  number,  so  that  he 
might  know  in  a  moment  which  of  the  brothers 
had  it  for  perusal. f     Those  who  studied  together 
were  to  receive  what  books  they  choose ;  but  when 
they  had  satisfied  themselves,  they  were  particu- 
larly directed  to  restore  them  to  their  assigned 
places ;  and  when  they  at  any  time  received  from 
the  armarian  a  book  for  their  private  reading,  they 
were  not  allowed  to  lend  it  to  any  one  else,  or  to 
use  it  in  common,  but  to  reserve  it  especially  for 
his  own  private  reading.     The  same  rule  extended 
to  the  singers,  who  if  they  required  books  for  their 
studies,  were  to  apply  to  the  abbot.  J     The   sick 
brothers   were   also    entitled   to    the   privilege   of 
receiving  from  the  armarian  books  for  their  solace 

*  Const.  Canon.  Reg.  ap.  Martene,  torn.  iii.  p.  263. 

f  Ibid. 

X  Ibid.,  torn.  iii.  cap.  xxxvi.  pp.  269,  270. 


BIBLIOMANIA.  21 

and  comfort ;  but  as  soon  as  the  lamps  were  lighted 
in  the  infirmary  the  books  were  put  away  till  the 
morning,  and  if  not  finished,  were  again  given  out 
from  the  library.*  In  the  more  ancient  monas- 
teries a  similar  case  was  observed  with  respect  to 
their  books.  The  rule  of  St.  Pacome  directed 
that  the  utmost  attention  should  be  paid  to  their 
preservation,  and  that  when  the  monks  went  to  the 
refectory  they  were  not  to  leave  their  books  open, 
but  to  carefully  close  and  put  them  in  their  as- 
signed places.  The  monastery  of  St.  Pacome  con- 
tained a  vast  number  of  monks ;  every  house,  says 
Mabillon,  was  composed  of  not  less  than  forty 
monks,  and  the  monastery  embraced  thirty  or  forty- 
houses.  Each  monk,  he  adds,  possessed  his  book, 
and  few  rested  without  forming  a  library ;  by  which 
we  may  infer  that  the  number  of  books  was  con- 
siderable, f  Indeed,  it  was  quite  a  common  prac- 
tice in  those  days,  scarce  as  books  were,  to  allow 
each  of  the  monks  one  or  more  for  his  private 
study,  besides  granting  them  access  to  the  library. 
The  constitutions  of  Lanfranc,  in  the  year  1072, 
directed  the  librarian,  at  the  commencement  of 
Lent,  to  deliver  a  book  to  each  of  the  monks  for 
their  private  reading,  allowing  them  a  whole  year 
for  its  perusal.  %  There  is  one  circumstance  con- 
nected with  the  affairs  of  the  library  quite  charac- 
teristic of  monkish  superstition,  and  bearing  painful 
testimony  to  their  mistaken  ideas  of  what  consti- 

*  Martene,  torn.  iii.  p.  331.  For  a  list  of  some  books  applied  to 
their  use,  see  MS.  Cot.  Galba,  c.  iv.  fo.  128. 

t  Mabillon,  Traite  des  Etudes  Monastiques,  4to.  Paris  1691,  cap. 
vi.  p.  34. 

\  Wilkin's  Concil.  torn.  i.  p.  332. 


22  BIBLIOMANIA. 

tuted  "good  works."  In  Martene's  book  there  is  a 
chapter,  De  Scientia  et  Signis — degrading  and  sad ; 
there  is  something  withal  curious  to  be  found  in  it. 
After  enjoining  the  most  scrupulous  silence  in  the 
church,  in  the  refectory,  in  the  cloister,  and  in  the 
dormitory,  at  all  times,  and  in  all  seasons ;  trans- 
forming those  men  into  perpetual  mutes,  and  even 
when  "actually  necessary,"  permitting  only  a  whis- 
per to  be  articulated  "  in  a  low  voice  in  the  ear," 
submissa  voce  in  aure,  it  then  proceeds  to  describe 
a  series  of  fantastic  grimaces  which  the  monks 
were  to  perform  on  applying  to  the  armarian  for 
books.  The  general  sign  for  a  book,  generali signi 
libri,  was  to  "extend  the  hand  and  make  a  move- 
ment as  if  turning  over  the  leaves  of  a  book."  For 
a  missal  the  monk  was  to  make  a  similar  movement 
with  a  sign  of  the  cross ;  for  the  gospels  the  sign 
of  the  cross  on  the  forehead ;  for  an  antiphon  or 
book  of  responses  he  was  to  strike  the  thumb  and 
little  finger  of  the  other  hand  together ;  for  a  book 
of  offices  or  gradale  to  make  the  sign  of  a  cross 
and  kiss  the  fingers ;  for  a  tract  lay  the  hand  on 
the  abdomen  and  apply  the  other  hand  to  the 
mouth  ;  for  a  capitulary  make  the  general  sign 
and  extend  the  clasped  hands  to  heaven  ;  for  a 
psalter  place  the  hands  upon  the  head  in  the  form 
of  a  crown,  such  as  the  king  is  wont  to  wear.* 
Religious  intolerance  was  rampant  when  this  rule 
was  framed  ;  hot  and  rancorous  denunciation  was 
lavished  with  amazing  prodigality  against  works  of 
loose  morality  or  heathen  origin ;  nor  did  the 
monks  feel  much  compassion — although  they  loved 
•  Stat,  pro  Reform,  ordin.  Grandimont.  ap.  Martene  cap.  x. 


BIBLIOMANIA.  23 

to  read  them — for  the  old  authors  of  antiquity. 
Pagans  they  were,  and  therefore  fit  only  to  be 
named  as  infidels  and  dogs,  so  the  monk  was 
directed  for  a  secular  book,  "which  some  pagan 
wrote  after  making  the  general  sign  to  scratch  his 
ear  with  his  hand,  just  as  a  dog  itching  would  do 
with  his  feet,  because  infidels  are  not  unjustly 
compared  to  such  creatures — quia  nee  immerito 
infideles  tali  animanti  comparantur*  Wretched 
bigotry  and  puny  malice!  Yet  what  a  sad  reflec- 
tion it  is,  that  with  all  the  foul  and  heartburning 
examples  which  those  dark  ages  of  the  monks 
afford,  posterity  have  failed  to  profit  by  them — 
religious  intolerance,  with  all  its  vain-glory  and 
malice,  flourishes  still,  the  cankering  worm  of 
many  a  Christian  blossom !  Besides  the  duties 
which  we  have  enumerated,  there  were  others 
which  it  was  the  province  of  the  armarian  to  fulfil. 
He  was  particularly  to  inspect  and  collate  those 
books  which,  according  to  the  decrees  of  the  church, 
it  was  unlawful  to  possess  different  from  the  author- 
ized copies ;  these  were  the  bible,  the  gospels,  missals, 
epistles,  collects  graduales,  antiphons,  hymns,  psal- 
ters, lessions,  and  the  monastic  rules  ;  these  were 
always  to  be  alike  even  in  the  most  minute  pointf 
He  was  moreover  directed  to  prepare  for  the  use  of 
the  brothers  short  tables  respecting  the  times  men- 
tioned in  the  capitulary  for  the  various  ofifices  of 
the  church,  to  make  notes  upon  the  matins,  the 
mass,  and  upon  the  different  orders. J     In  fact,  the 

*  Ibid.,  torn.  iv.  pp.  289,  339. 

t  Const.  Canon.  Reg.  ap.  Martene,  torn.  Hi.  p.  263. 

X  Ibid.,  cap.  xxi.  p.  263. 


24  BIBLIOMANIA. 

monkish  amanuensis  was  expected  to  undertake  all 
those  matters  which  required  care  and  learning 
combined.  He  wrote  the  letters  of  the  monastery, 
and  often  filled  the  office  of  secretary  to  my  Lord 
Abbot.  In  the  monasteries  of  course  the  services 
of  the  librarian  were  unrequited  by  any  pecuniary 
remuneration,  but  in  the  cathedral  libraries  a  certain 
salary  was  sometimes  allowed  them.  Thus  we  learn 
that  the  amanuensis  of  the  conventual  church  of 
Ely  received  in  the  year  1372  forty-three  shillings 
and  fourpence  for  his  annual  duties;*  and  Oswald, 
Bishop  of  Worcester,  in  the  tenth  century,  gave 
considerable  landed  possessions  to  a  monk  of  that 
church  as  a  recompense  for  his  services  as  librarian.f 
In  some  monasteries,  in  the  twelfth  century,  if  not 
earlier,  they  levied  a  tax  on  all  the  members  of  the 
community,  who  paid  a  yearly  sum  to  the  librarian 
for  binding,  preserving,  and  purchasing  copies  for 
the  library.  One  of  these  rules,  bearing  date  1 145, 
was  made  by  Udon,  Abbot  of  St,  Pere  en  Valine  a 
Chantres,  and  that  it  might  be  more  plausibly 
received,  he  taxed  himself  as  well  as  all  the  mem- 
bers of  his  own  house.  J  The  librarian  sometimes, 
in  addition  to  his  regular  duties,  combined  the 
office  of  precentor  to  the  monastery.§  Some  of 
their  account-books  have  been  preserved,  and  by 
an  inspection  of  them,  we  may  occasionally  gather 

*  Stevenson's  Supple,  to  Bentham's  Hist,  of  the  Church  of 
Ely,  p.  51. 

t  Thomas'  Survey  of  the  Church  of  Worcester,  p.  45. 

X  Mabillon.  Annal.  torn.  vi.  pp.  651  and  652.  Hist.  Litt.  de  la 
France,  ix.  p.  140. 

%  They  managed  the  pecuniary  matters  of  the  fraternity. 
William  of  Malmsbury  was  precentor  as  well  as  librarian  to  his 
monastery. 


/' 


BIBLIOMANIA.  25 

some  interesting  and  curious  hints,  as  to  the  cost 
of  books  and  writing  materials  in  those  times. 
As  may  be  supposed,  the  monkish  librarians  often 
became  great  bibliophiles,  for  being  in  constant 
communication  with  choice  manuscripts,  they  soon 
acquired  a  great  mania  for  them.  Posterity  are 
also  particularly  indebted  to  the  pens  of  these  book 
conservators  of  the  middle  ages ;  for  some  of  the 
best  chroniclers  and  writers  of  those  times  were 
humble  librarians  to  some  religious  house. 

Not  only  did  the  bibliophiles  of  old  exercise 
the  utmost  care  in  the  preservation  of  their  darling 
books,  but  the  religious  basis  of  their  education 
and  learning  prompted  them  to  supplicate  the 
blessing  of  God  upon  their  goodly  tomes.  Al- 
though I  might  easily  produce  other  instances,  one 
will  suffice  to  give  an  idea  of  their  nature :  "  O 
Lord,  send  the  virtue  of  thy  Holy  Spirit  upon 
these  our  books ;  that  cleansing  them  from  all 
earthly  things,  by  thy  holy  blessing,  they  may 
mercifully  enlighten  our  hearts  and  give  us  true 
understanding;  and  grant  that  by  thy  teaching, 
they  may  brightly  preserve  and  make  full  an  abun- 
dance of  good  works  according  to  thy  will."  * 

*  Martene  de  Antiq.  Eccl.  Ritibus  ii.  p.  302. 


CHAPTER  III. 

Scriptoria  and  the  Scribes. — Care  in  copying. — Bible 
reading  among  the  monks. — Booksellers  in  the 
middle  ages.  —  Circulating  libraries.  —  Calligra- 
phic art,  etc. 


S  the  monasteries  were  the  schools 
of  learning,  so  their  occupants  were 
the  preservers  of  literature,  and,  as 
Herault  observes,  had  they  not 
taken  the  trouble  to  transcribe 
books,  the  ancients  had  been  lost 
to  us  for  ever;  to  them,  therefore,  we  owe  much. 
But  there  are  many,  however,  who  suppose  that 
the  monastic  establishments  were  hotbeds  of  super- 
stition and  fanaticism,  from  whence  nothing  of  a 
useful  or  elevated  nature  could  possibly  emanate. 
They  are  too  apt  to  suppose  that  the  human  in- 
tellect must  be  altogether  weak  and  impotent  when 
confined  within  such  narrow  limits;  but  truth  and 
knowledge  can  exist  even  in  the  dark  cells  of  a 
gloomy  cloister,  and  inspire  the  soul  with  a  fire 
that  can  shed  a  light  far  beyond  its  narrow  pre- 


28  BIBLIOMANIA. 

cincts.  Indeed,  I  scarce  know  whether  to  regret, 
as  some  appear  to  do,  that  the  literature  and 
learning  of  those  rude  times  was  preserved  and 
fostered  by  the  Christian  church ;  it  is  said,  that 
their  strict  devotion  and  religious  zeal  prompted 
them  to  disregard  all  things  but  a  knowledge  of 
those  divine,  but  such  is  not  the  case ;  at  least,  I 
have  not  found  it  so ;  it  is  true,  as  churchmen,  they 
were  principally  devoted  to  the  study  of  divine  and 
ecclesiastical  lore ;  but  it  is  also  certain  that  in  that 
capacity  they  gradually  infused  the  mild  spirit  of 
their  Master  among  the  darkened  society  over 
which  they  presided,  and  among  whom  they  shone 
as  beacons  of  light  in  a  dreary  desert.  But  the 
church  did  more  than  this.  She  preserved  to  pos- 
terity the  profane  learnings  of  Old  Greece  and 
Rome ;  copied  it,  multiplied  it,  and  spread  it.  She 
recorded  to  after  generations  in  plain,  simple 
language,  the  ecclesiastical  and  civil  events  of  the 
past,  for  it  is  from  the  terse  chronicles  of  the 
monkish  churchmen  that  we  learn  now  the  his- 
tory of  what  happened  then.  Much  as  we  may 
dislike  the  monastic  system,  the  cold,  heartless, 
gloomy  ascetic  atmosphere  of  the  cloister,  and 
much  as  we  may  deplore  the  mental  dissipation  of 
man's  best  attributes,  which  the  system  of  those 
old  monks  engendered,  we  must  exercise  a  cool 
and  impartial  judgment,  and  remember  that  what 
now  would  be  intolerable  and  monstrously  incon- 
sistent with  our  present  state  of  intellectuality, 
might  at  some  remote  period,  in  the  ages  of  dark- 
ness and  comparative  barbarism,  have  had  its  vir- 
tues and  beneficial  influences.     As  for  myself,  it 


BIBLIOMANIA.  29 

would  be  difficult  to  convince  me,  with  all  those 
fine  relics  of  their  deeds  before  me,  those  beauteous 
fanes  dedicated  to  piety  and  God,  those  libraries 
so  crowded  with  their  vellum  tomes,  so  gorgeously- 
adorned,  and  the  abundant  evidence  which  history 
bears  to  their  known  charity  and  hospitable  love, 
that  these  monks  and  their  system  was  a  scheme 
of  dismal  barbarism  ;  it  may  be  so,  but  my  reading 
has  taught  me  different ;  but,  on  the  other  hand, 
although  the  monks  possessed  many  excellent 
qualities,  being  the  encouragers  of  literature,  the 
preservers  of  books,  and  promulgators  of  civili- 
zation, we  must  not  hide  their  numerous  and  pal- 
pable faults,  or  overlook  the  poison  which  their 
system  of  monachism  ultimately  infused  into  the 
very  vitals  of  society.  In  the  early  centuries, 
before  the  absurdities  of  Romanism  were  intro- 
duced, the  influence  of  the  monastic  orders  was 
highly  beneficial  to  our  Saxon  ancestors,  but  in 
after  ages  the  Church  of  England  was  degraded 
by  the  influence  of  the  fast  growing  abominations 
of  Popedom.  She  drank  copiously  of  the  deadly 
potion,  and  became  the  blighted  and  ghostly 
shadow  of  her  former  self.  Forgetting  the  hu- 
mility of  her  divine  Lord,  she  sought  rather  to 
imitate  the  worldly  splendor  and  arrogance  of  her 
Sovereign  Pontiff.  The  evils  too  obviously  existed 
to  be  overlooked  ;  but  it  is  not  my  place  to  further 
expose  them ;  a  more  pleasing  duty  guides  my  pen ; 
others  have  done  all  this,  lashing  them  painfully 
for  their  oft-told  sins.  Frail  humanity  glories  in 
chastizing  the  frailty  of  brother  man.  But  we  will 
not  denounce  them  here,  for  did  not  the  day  of 


30  BIBLIOMANIA. 

retribution  come  ?  And  was  not  justice  satisfied  ? 
Having  made  these  few  preliminary  remarks,  let 
us,  in  a  brief  manner,  inquire  into  the  system  ob- 
served in  the  cloisters  by  the  monks  for  the  pre- 
servation and  transcription  of  manuscripts.  Let 
us  peep  into  the  quiet  cells  of  those  old  monks, 
and  see  whether  history  warrants  the  unqualified 
contempt  which  their  efforts  in  this  department 
have  met  with. 

In  most  monasteries  there  were  two  kinds  of 
Scriptoria,  or  writing  offices  ;  for  in  addition  to  the 
large  and  general  apartment  used  for  the  tran- 
scription of  church  books  and  manuscripts  for  the 
library,  there  were  also  several  smaller  ones  occu- 
pied by  the  superiors  and  the  more  learned  mem- 
bers of  the  community,  as  closets  for  private 
devotion  and  study.  Thus  we  read,  that  in  the 
Cistercian  orders  there  were  places  set  apart  for 
the  transcription  of  books  called  Scriptoria,  or 
cells  assigned  to  the  scribes,  **  separate  from  each 
other,"  where  the  books  might  be  transcribed  in 
the  strictest  silence,  according  to  the  holy  rules  of 
their  founders.*  These  little  cells  were  usually 
situated  in  the  most  retired  part  of  the  monastery, 
and  were  probably  incapable  of  accommodating 
more  than  one  or  two  persons  ;t  dull  and  comfort- 
less places,  no  doubt,  yet  they  were  deemed  great 
luxuries,  and  the  use  of  them  only  granted  to  such 
as  became  distinguished  for  their  piety,  or  erudition. 
We  read  that  when  David  went  to  the  Isle  of 
Wight,  to    Paulinus,  to  receive  his  education, ,  he 

•  Martene  Thesaurus  novus  Anecdot,  torn.  iv.  col.  1462. 
t  See  Du  Cange  in  Voc,  vol.  vi.  p.  264, 


BIBLIOMANIA.  31 

used  to  sup  in  the  Refectory,  but  had  a  Scrip- 
torium, or  study,  in  his  cell,  being  a  famous  scribe.* 
The  aged  monks,  who  often  lived  in  these  little 
offices,  separate  from  the  rest  of  the  scribes,  were 
not  expected  to  work  so  arduously  as  the  rest. 
Their  employment  was  comparatively  easy;  nor 
were  they  compelled  to  work  so  long  as  those  in 
the  cloister.f  There  is  a  curious  passage  in  Tang- 
mar's  Life  of  St.  Bernward,  which  would  lead  us 
to  suspect  that  private  individuals  possessed  Scrip- 
toria ;  for,  says  he,  there  are  Scriptoria,  not  only 
in  the  monasteries,  but  in  other  places,  in  which 
are  conceived  books  equal  to  the  divine  works  of 
the  philosophers.J  The  Scriptorium  of  the  monas- 
tery in  which  the  general  business  of  a  literary 
nature  was  transacted,  was  an  apartment  far  more 
extensive  and  commodious,  fitted  up  with  forms  and 
desks  methodically  arranged,  so  as  to  contain  con- 
veniently a  great  number  of  copyists.  In  some  of 
the  monasteries  and  cathedrals,  they  had  long 
ranges  of  seats  one  after  another,  at  which  were 
seated  the  scribes,  one  well  versed  in  the  subject 
on  which  the  book  treated,  recited  from  the  copy 
whilst  they  wrote ;  so  that,  on  a  word  being  given 
out  by  him,  it  was  copied  by  all.§  The  multiplica- 
tion of  manuscripts,  under  such  a  system  as  this, 
must  have  been  immense ;  but  they  did  not  always 

*  Anglia  Sacra,  ii.  635.     Fosbrooke  Brit,  Monach.,  p.  15. 

t  Martene  Thes.  Nov.  Anec.  torn.  iv.  col.  1462.  Stat.  Ord. 
Cistere,  anni  1278,  they  were  allowed  for  "Studendum  vel  recrean- 
dum." 

X  Hildesh.  episc  apud  Leibuit.,  torn.  i.  Script.  Brunsvic,  p.  444. 
I  am  indebted  to  Du  Cange  for  this  reference. 

$  King's  Munimenta  Antiqua.  Stevenson's  Suppl.  to  Bentham, 
p.  64. 


32  BIBLIOMANIA. 

make  books,  fecit  libros,  as  they  called  it,  in  this 
wholesale  manner,  but  each  monk  diligently  la- 
bored at  the  transcription  of  a  separate  work. 

The  amount  of  labor  carried  on  in  the  Scrip- 
torium, of  course,  in  many  cases  depended  upon 
the  revenues  of  the  abbey,  and  the  disposition  of 
the  abbot ;  but  this  was  not  always  the  case,  as  in 
some  monasteries  they  undertook  the  transcription 
of  books  as  a  matter  of  commerce,  and  added  broad 
lands  to  their  house  by  the  industry  of  their  pens. 
But  the  Scriptorium  was  frequently  supported  by 
resources  solely  applicable  to  its  use.  Laymen, 
who  had  a  taste  for  literature,  or  who  entertained 
an  esteem  for  it  in  others,  often  at  their  death 
bequeathed  estates  for  the  support  of  the  monastic 
Scriptoria.  Robert,  one  of  the  Norman  leaders, 
gave  two  parts  of  the  tythes  of  Hatfield,  and  the 
tythes  of  Redburn,  for  the  support  of  the  Scrip- 
torium of  St.  Alban's.*  The  one  belonging  to  the 
monastery  of  St.  Edmundsbury  was  endowed  with 
two  mills,f  and  in  the  church  of  Ely  there  is  a 
charter  of  Bishof  Nigellus,  granting  to  the  Scrip- 
torium of  the  monastery  the  tythes  of  Wythessey 
and  Impitor,  two  parts  of  the  tythes  of  the  Lord- 
ship of  Pampesward,  with  2s.  2d.,  and  a  messuage 
in  Ely  ad  faciendos  et  emandandos  libros.\ 

The  abbot  superintended  the  management  of 
the  Scriptorium,  and  decided  upon  the  hours  for 
their  labor,  during  which  time  they  were  ordered 

*  Matt  Paris,  p.  51. 

t  Warton's  Hist.  Eng.  Poetry,  p.  cxiv.  Regest.  Nig.  St.  Ed- 
mund. Abbat. 

X  Stevenson's  Sup.  to  Bentham's  Church  of  Norwich,  4to.  1817, 
p.  51. 


BIBLIOMANIA.  33 

to  work  with  unremitting  diligence,  **  not  leaving 
to  go  and  wander  in  idleness,"  but  to  attend  solely 
to  the  business  of  transcribing.  To  prevent  de- 
traction or  interruption,  no  one  was  allowed  to 
enter  except  the  abbot,  the  prior,  the  sub-prior, 
and  the  armarian,*  as  the  latter  took  charge  of  all 
the  materials  and  implements  used  by  the  tran- 
scribers, it  was  his  duty  to  prepare  and  give  them 
out  when  required ;  he  made  the  ink  and  cut  the 
parchment  ready  for  use.  He  was  strictly  enjoined, 
however,  to  exercise  the  greatest  economy  in  sup- 
plying these  precious  materials,  and  not  to  give 
more  copies  "  nee  artavos,  nee  cultellos,  nee  scar- 
pellae,  nee  membranes,"  than  was  actually  necessary, 
or  than  he  had  computed  as  sufficient  for  the  work  ; 
and  what  the  armarian  gave  them  the  monks  were 
to  receive  without  contradiction  or  contention.f 

The  utmost  silence  prevailed  in  the  Scriptorium; 
rules  were  framed,  and  written  admonitions  hung 
on  the  walls,  to  enforce  the  greatest  care  and 
diligence  in  copying  exactly  from  the  originals.  In 
Aleuin's  works  we  find  one  of  these  preserved;  it  is 
a  piece  inscribed  ^^ Ad  Musceum  libros  scriben- 
tium  ;  "  the  lines  are  as  follows  : 

"  Hie  sideant  sacrae  scribentes  famina  legis, 
Nee  non  sanetorum  dicta  sacrata  Patrum, 

Haec  interserere  caveant  sua  frivola  verbis, 
Frivola  nee  propter  erret  et  ipsa  manus : 

Correctosque  sibi  quaerant  studiose  libellos, 

Tramite  quo  recto  penna  volantis  eat. 
Per  cola  distinquant  proprios,  et  commata  sensus, 

Et  punetos  ponant  ordine  quosque  suo. 

*  Martene  de  Ant.  Eccl.  Ritib.,  cap.  xxi.  torn,  ill,  p.  263. 
t  /did. 


34  BIBLIOMANIA. 

Ne  vel  falsa  legat,  taceat  vel  forte  repente, 

Ante  pios  fratres,  lector  in  Ecclesia. 
Est  opus  egregium  sacros  jam  scribete  libros, 

Nee  mercede  sua  scriptor  et  ipse  caret. 

Fodere  quam  vites,  melius  est  scribere  libros, 

Ille  suo  ventri  serviet,  iste  animse. 
Vel  nova,  vel  Vetera  poterit  proferre  magister 

Plurima,  quisque  legit  dicta  sacrata  Patrum."* 

Other  means  were  resorted  to  besides  these  to 
preserve  the  text  of  their  books  immaculate,  it  was 
a  common  practice  for  the  scribe  at  the  end  of  his 
copy,  to  adjure  all  who  transcribed  from  it  to  use 
the  greatest  care,  and  to  refrain  from  the  least 
alteration  of  word  or  sense.  Authors  more  espe- 
cially followed  this  course,  thus  at  the  end  of  some 
we  find  such  injunctions  as  this. 

"  I  adjure  you  who  shall  transcribe  this  book, 
by  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ  and  by  his  glorious 
coming,  who  will  come  to  judge  the  quick  and  the 
dead,  that  you  compare  what  you  transcribe  and 
diligently  correct  it  by  the  copy  from  which  you 
transcribe  it — this  adjuration  also — and  insert  it  in 
your  copy."f 

The  Consuetudines  Canonicorum,  before  refer- 
red to,  also  particularly  impressed  this  upon  the 
monks,  and  directed  that  all  the  brothers  who  were 
engaged  as  scribes,  were  not  to  alter  any  writing, 
although  in  their  own  mind  they  might  think  it 
proper,  without  first  receiving  the  sanction  of  the 
abbot,  ''on  no  account  were  they  to  commit  so  great 
a  presumption!' %      But  notwithstanding  that  the 

•  Alcuini  Opera,  tom.  ii.  vol.  i.  p.  211.     Carmin  xvii. 
t  Preface  to  ^Ifric's  Homilies  MS.  Lansdowne,  No.  373,  vol.  iv. 
in  the  British  Museum. 

X  Const.  Can.  Reg.  ap.  Martene,  tom.  iii.  p.  263. 


BIBLIOMANIA.  35 

scribes  were  thus  enjoined  to  use  the  utmost  care 
in  copying  books,  doubtless  an  occasional  error 
crept  in,  which  many  causes  might  have  produced, 
such  as  bad  light,  haste,  a  little  drowsiness,  im- 
perfect sight,  or  even  a  flickering  lamp  was  suffi- 
cient to  produce  some  trivial  error ;  but  in  works  of 
importance  the  smallest  error  is  of  consequence,  as 
some  future  scribe  puzzled  by  the  blunder,  might, 
in  an  attempt  to  correct,  still  more  augment  the 
imperfection  ;  to  guard  against  this,  with  respect  to 
the  Scriptures,  the  most  critical  care  was  enforced. 
Monks  advanced  in  age  were  alone  allowed  to 
transcribe  them,  and  after  their  completion  they 
were  read — revised — and  reread  again,  and  it  is  by 
that  means  that  so  uniform  a  reading  has  been 
preserved,  and  although  slight  differences  may  here 
and  there  occur,  there  are  no  books  which  have 
traversed  through  the  shadows  of  the  dark  ages, 
that  preserve  their  original  text  so  pure  and  un- 
corrupt  as  the  copies  of  the  Scriptures,  the  fathers 
of  the  church,  and  the  ancient  writings  of  the  classic 
authors ;  sometimes,  it  is  true,  a  manuscript  of  the 
last  order  is  discovered  possessing  a  very  different 
reading  in  some  particular  passage;  but  these  appear 
rather  as  futile  emendations  or  interpolations  of  the 
scribe  than  as  the  result  of  a  downright  blunder, 
and  are  easily  perceivable,  for  when  the  monkish 
churchmen  tampered  with  ancient  copies,  it  gen- 
erally originated  in  a  desire  to  smooth  over  the 
indecencies  of  the  heathen  authors,  and  so  render 
them  less  liable  to  corrupt  the  holy  contemplations 
of  the  devotee  ;  and  while  we  blame  the  pious  fraud, 
we  cannot  but  respect  the  motive  that  dictated  it. 


36  BIBLIOMANIA. 

But  as  regards  the  Scriptures,  we  talk  of  the 
carelessness  of  the  monks  and  the  interpolations 
of  the  scribes  as  if  these  were  faults  peculiar  to  the 
monastic  ages  alone  ;  alas  !  the  history  of  Biblical 
transmission  tells  us  differently,  the  gross  per- 
versions, omissions,  and  errors  wrought  in  the 
holy  text,  proclaim  how  prevalent  these  same 
faults  have  been  in  the  ages  of  printed  literature, 
and  which  appear  more  palpable  by  being  produced 
amidst  deep  scholars,  and  surrounded  with  all  the 
critical  acumen  of  a  learned  age.  Five  or  six 
thousand  of  these  gross  blunders,  or  these  wilful 
mutilations,  protest  the  unpleasant  fact,  and  show 
how  much  of  human  grossness  it  has  acquired, 
and  how  besmeared  with  corruption  those  sacred 
pages  have  become  in  passing  through  the  hands 
of  man,  and  the  "revisings"  of  sectarian  minds.  I 
am  tempted  to  illustrate  this  by  an  anecdote  re- 
lated by  Sir  Nicholas  L'Estrange  of  Hunstanton, 
and  preserved  in  a  MS.  in  the  Harlein  collection. 
— "  Dr.  Usher,  Bish.  of  Armath,  being  to  preach 
at  Paules  Crosse  and  passing  hastily  by  one  of  the 
stationers,  called  for  a  Bible,  and  had  a  little  one 
of  the  London  edition  given  him  out,  but  when  he 
came  to  looke  for  his  text,  that  very  verse  was 
omitted  in  the  print :  which  gave  the  first  occasion 
of  complaint  to  the  king  of  the  insufferable  negli- 
gence, and  insufficience  of  the  London  printers 
and  presse,  and  bredde  that  great  contest  that 
followed,  betwixt  the  univers.  of  Cambridge  and 
London  stationers,  about  printing  of  the  Bibles."* 

*  MS.  Harl.  6395,  anecdote  348. — I  am  indebted  to  D'Israeli  for 
the  reference,  but  not  for  the  extract. 


BIBLIOMANIA.  37 

Gross  and  numerous  indeed  were  the  errors  of  the 
corrupt  bible  text  of  that  age,  and  far  exceeding 
even  the  blunders  of  monkish  pens,  and  certainly 
much  less  excusable,  for  in  those  times  they  seldom 
had  a  large  collection  of  codices  to  compare,  so 
that  by  studying  their  various  readings,  they  could 
arrive  at  a  more  certain  and  authentic  version. 
The  paucity  of  the  sacred  volume,  if  it  rendered 
their  pens  more  liable  to  err,  served  to  enforce 
upon  them  the  necessity  of  still  greater  scrutiny. 
On  looking  over  a  monastic  catalogue,  the  first 
volume  that  I  search  for  is  the  Bible ;  and,  I  feel 
far  more  disappointment  if  I  find  it  not  there,  than 
I  do  at  the  absence  of  Horace  or  Ovid — there  is 
something  so  desolate  in  the  idea  of  a  Christian 
priest  without  the  Book  of  Life — of  a  minister  of 
God  without  the  fountain  of  truth — that  however 
favorably  we  may  be  prone  to  regard  them,  a 
thought  will  arise  that  the  absence  of  this  sacred 
book  may  perhaps  be  referred  to  the  indolence  of 
the  monkish  pen,  or  to  the  laxity  of  priestly  piety. 
But  such  I  am  glad  to  say  was  not  often  the  case ; 
the  Bible  it  is  true  was  an  expensive  book,  but  can 
scarcely  be  regarded  as  a  rare  one ;  the  monastery 
was  indeed  poor  that  had  it  not,  and  when  once 
obtained  the  monks  took  care  to  speedily  tran- 
scribe it.  Sometimes  they  only  possessed  detached 
portions,  but  when  this  was  the  case  they  generally 
borrowed  of  some  neighboring  and  more  fortunate 
monastery,  the  missing  parts  to  transcribe,  and  so 
complete  their  own  copies  But  all  this  did  not 
make  the  Bible  less  loved  among  them,  or  less 
anxiously  and  ardently  studied,  they  devoted  their 

640S1 


38  ~  BIBLIOMANIA. 

days,  and  the  long  hours  of  the  night,  to  the 
perusal  of  those  pages  of  inspired  truth,*  and  it  is 
a  calumny  without  a  shadow  of  foundation  to  de- 
clare that  the  monks  were  careless  of  scripture 
reading ;  it  is  true  they  did  not  apply  that  vigor 
of  thought,  and  unrestrained  reflection  upon  it 
which  mark  the  labors  of  the  more  modern  stu- 
dent, nor  did  they  often  venture  to  interpret  the 
hidden  meaning  of  the  holy  mysteries  by  the 
powers  of  their  own  mind,  but  were  guided  in  this 
important  matter  by  the  works  of  the  fathers.  But 
hence  arose  a  circumstance  which  gave  full  exer- 
cise to  their  mental  powers  and  compelled  the 
monk  in  spite  of  his  timidity  to  think  a  little  for 
himself.  Unfortunately  the  fathers,  venerable  and 
venerated  as  they  were,  after  all  were  but  men, 
with  many  of  the  frailties  and  all  the  fallabilities 
of  poor  human  nature  ;  the  pope  might  canonize 
them,  and  the  priesthood  bow  submissively  to 
their  spiritual  guidance,  still  they  remained  for  all 
that  but  mortals  of  dust  and  clay,  and  their  bulky 
tomes  yet  retain  the  swarthiness  of  the  tomb  about 
them,  the  withering  impress  of  humanity.  Such 
being  the  case  we,  who  do  not  regard  them  quite 
so  infallible,  feel  no  surprise  at  a  circumstance 
which  sorely  perplexed  the  monks  of  old,  they  un- 
chained and  unclasped  their  cumbrous  "  Works  of 

*  The  monks  were  strictly  enjoined  by  the  monastic  rules  to 
study  the  Bible  unceasingly.  The  Statutes  of  the  Dominican  order 
are  particularly  impressive  on  this  point,  and  enforce  a  constant 
reading  and  critical  study  of  the  sacred  volume,  so  as  to  fortify  them- 
selves for  disputation  ;  they  were  to  peruse  it  continually,  and  apply 
to  it  before  all  other  reading  semper  ante  aliam  lectionem.  Martene 
Thesan.  Nov.  Anecdot.,  tom.  iv.  col.  1932.  See  also  cols.  1789, 
1836,  1912,  1917,  1934. 


BIBLIOMANIA,  39 

the  Fathers,"  and  pored  over  those  massy  expo- 
sitions with  increasing  wonder ;  surrounded  by 
these  holy  guides,  these  fathers  of  infallibility, 
they  were  like  strangers  in  a  foreign  land,  did  they 
follow  this  holy  saint  they  seemed  about  to  for- 
sake the  spiritual  direction  of  one  having  equal 
claims  to  their  obedience  and  respect ;  alas !  for 
poor  old  weak  tradition,  those  fabrications  of  man's 
faulty  reason  were  found,  with  all  their  orthodoxy, 
to  clash  woefully  in  scriptural  interpretation.  Here 
was  a  dilemma  for  the  monkish  student !  whose 
vow  of  obedience  to  patristical  guidance  was  thus 
sorely  perplexed  ;  he  read  and  re-read,  analyzed 
passage  after  passage,  interpreted  word  after  word  ; 
and  yet,  poor  man,  his  laborious  study  was  fruitless 
and  unprofitable !  What  bible  student  can  refrain 
from  sympathizing  with  him  amidst  these  torturing 
doubts  and  this  crowd  of  contradiction,  but  after 
all  we  cannot  regret  this,  for  we  owe  to  it  more 
than  my  feeble  pen  can  write,  so  immeasurable 
have  been  the  fruits  of  this  little  unheeded  circum- 
stance. It  gave  birth  to  many  a  bright  indepen- 
dent declaration,  involving  pure  lines  of  scripture 
interpretation,  which  appear  in  the  darkness  of 
those  times  like  fixed  stars  before  us ;  to  this,  in 
Saxon  days,  we  are  indebted  for  the  labors  of 
yElfric  and  his  anti-Roman  doctrines,  whose  soul 
also  sympathized  with  a  later  age  by  translating 
portions  of  the  Bible  into  the  vulgar  tongue,  thus 
making  it  accessible  to  all  classes  of  the  people. 
To  this  we  are  indebted  for  all  the  good  that  re- 
sulted from  those  various  heterodoxies  and  heresies, 
which  sometimes  disturbed  the  church  during  the 


40  BIBLIOMANIA. 

dark  ages ;  but  which  wrought  much  ultimate 
good  by  compelling  the  thoughts  of  men  to  dwell 
on  these  important  matters.  Indeed,  to  the  in- 
stability of  the  fathers,  as  a  sure  guide,  we  may 
trace  the  origin  of  all  those  efforts  of  the  human 
mind,  which  cleared  the  way  for  the  Reformation, 
and  relieved  man  from  the  shackles  of  these  spiri- 
tual guides  of  the  monks. 

But  there  were  many  cloistered  Christians  who 
studied  the  bible  undisturbed  by  these  shadows 
and  doubts,  and  who,  heedless  of  patristical  lore 
and  saintly  wisdom,  devoured  the  spiritual  food 
in  its  pure  and  uncontaminating  simplicity  — 
such  students,  humble,  patient,  devoted,  will  be 
found  crowding  the  monastic  annals,  and  yield- 
ing good  evidence  of  the  same  by  the  holy  tenor 
of  their  sinless  lives,  their  Christian  charity  and 
love. 

But  while  so  many  obtained  the  good  title  of 
an  ""Amator  Scripturarum^'  as  the  bible  student 
was  called  in  those  monkish  days,  I  do  not  pretend 
to  say  that  the  Bible  was  a  common  book  among 
them,  or  that  every  monk  possessed  one — far  dif- 
ferent indeed  was  the  case — a  copy  of  the  Old 
and  New  Testament  often  supplied  the  wants  of 
an  entire  monastery,  and  in  others,  as  I  have  said 
before,  only  some  detached  portions  were  to  be 
found  in  their  libraries.  Sometimes  they  were 
more  plentiful,  and  the  monastery  could  boast  of 
two  or  three  copies,  besides  a  few  separate  por- 
tions, and  occasionally  I  have  met  with  instances 
where  besides  several  Biblia  Optima,  they  enjoyed 
Hebrew  codices  and  translations,  with  numerous 


BIBLIOMANIA.  41 

copies  of  the  gospels.  We  must  not  forget,  how- 
ever, that  the  transcription  of  a  Bible  was  a  work 
of  time,  and  required  the  outlay  of  much  industry 
and  wealth.  *'  Brother  Tedynton,"  a  monk  of  Ely, 
commenced  a  Bible  in  1396,  and  was  several  years 
before  he  completed  it.  The  magnitude  of  the 
undertaking  can  scarcely  be  imagined  by  those 
unpractised  in  the  art  of  copying,  but  when  the 
monk  saw  the  long  labor  of  his  pen  before  him, 
and  looked  upon  the  well  bound  strong  clasped 
volumes,  with  their  clean  vellum  folios  and  fine 
illuminations,  he  seemed  well  repaid  for  his  years 
of  toil  and  tedious  labor,  and  felt  a  glow  of  pious 
pleasure  as  he  contemplated  his  happy  acquisition, 
and  the  comfort  and  solace  which  he  should  here- 
after derive  from  its  holy  pages!  We  are  not 
surprised  then,  that  a  Bible  in  those  days  should 
be  esteemed  so  valuable,  and  capable  of  realizing  a 
considerable  sum.  The  monk,  independent  of  its 
spiritual  value,  regarded  it  as  a  great  possession, 
worthy  of  being  bestowed  at  his  death,  with  all  the 
solemnity  of  a  testamentary  process,  and  of  being 
gratefully  acknowledged  by  the  fervent  prayers  of 
the  monkish  brethren.  Kings  and  nobles  offered 
it  as  an  appropriate  and  generous  gift,  and  bishops 
were  deemed  benefactors  to  their  church  by  adding 
it  to  the  library.  On  its  covers  were  written 
earnest  exhortations  to  the  Bible  student,  ad- 
monishing the  greatest  care  in  its  use,  and  leveling 
anathemas  and  excommunications  upon  any  one 
who  should  dare  to  purloin  it.  For  its  greater 
security  it  was  frequently  chained  to  a  reading 
desk,  and  if  a  duplicate  copy  was  lent  to  a  neigh- 


42  BIBLIOMANIA. 

boring  monastery  they  required  a  large  deposit,  or 
a  formal  bond  for  its  safe  return.*  These  facts, 
while  they  show  its  value,  also  prove  how  highly 
it  was  esteemed  among  them,  and  how  much  the 
monks  loved  the  Book  of  Life. 

But  how  different  is  the  picture  now — how  oppo- 
site all  this  appears  to  the  aspect  of  bible  propaga- 
tion in  our  own  time.  Thanks  to  the  printing-press, 
to  bible  societies,  and  to  the  benevolence  of  God, 
we  cannot  enter  the  humblest  cottage  of  the  poorest 
peasant  without  observing  the  Scriptures  on  his 
little  shelf — not  always  read,  it  is  true — nor  always 
held  in  veneration  as  in  the  old  days  before  us — its 
very  plentitude  and  cheapness  takes  off  its  attraction 
to  irreligious  and  indifferent  readers,  but  to  poor 
and  needy  Christians  what  words  can  express  the 
fulness  of  the  blessing.  Yet  while  we  thank  God 
for  this  great  boon,  let  us  refrain  from  casting  un- 
charitable reflections  upon  the  monks  for  its  com- 
parative paucity  among  them.  If  its  possession  was 
not  so  easily  acquired,  they  were  nevertheless  true 
lovers  of  the  Bible,  and  preserved  and  multiplied  it 
in  dark  and  troublous  times. 

Our  remarks  have  hitherto  applied  to  the  mon- 
astic scribes  alone  ;  but  it  is  necessary  here  to  speak 
of  the  secular  copyists,  who  were  an  important  class 
during  the  middle  ages,  and  supplied  the  functions 
of  the  bibliopole  of  the  ancients.  But  the  trans- 
cribing trade  numbered  three  or  four  distinct  bran- 

*  About  the  year  1225  Roger  de  Insula,  Dean  of  York,  gave 
several  copies  of  the  bible  to  the  University  of  Oxford,  and  ordered 
that  those  who  borrowed  them  for  perusal  should  deposit  property 
of  equal  value  as  a  security  for  their  safe  return. — Wood^s  Hist. 
Antig.  Oxon.  ii.  48. 


BIBLIOMANIA.  43 

ches.  There  were  the  Librarii  Antiquarii,  Notarii, 
and  the  Illuminators — occasionally  these  professions 
were  all  united  in  one — where  perseverance  or  talent 
had  acquired  a  knowledge  of  these  various  arts. 
There  appears  to  have  been  considerable  competition 
between  these  contending  bodies.  The  notarii  were 
jealous  of  the  librarii,  and  the  librarii  in  their  turn 
were  envious  of  the  antiquarii,  who  devoted  their 
ingenuity  to  the  transcription  and  repairing  of  old 
books  especially,  rewriting  such  parts  as  were 
defective  or  erased,  and  restoring  the  dilapidations 
of  the  binding.  Being  learned  in  old  writings  they 
corrected  and  revised  the  copies  of  ancient  codices ; 
of  this  class  we  find  mention  as  far  back  as  the  time 
of  Cassiodorus  and  Isidore.*  "They  deprived," 
says  Astle,  "  the  poor  librarii,  or  common  scriptores, 
of  great  part  of  their  business,  so  that  they  found  it 
difficult  to  gain  a  subsistence  for  themselves  and 
their  families.  This  put  them  about  finding  out 
more  expeditious  methods  of  transcribing  books. 
They  formed  the  letters  smaller,  and  made  use  of 
more  conjugations  and  abbreviations  than  had  been 
usual.  They  proceeded  in  this  manner  till  the 
letters  became  exceedingly  small  and  extremely 
difficult  to  be  read."f  The  fact  of  there  existing  a 
class  of  men,  whose  fixed  employment  or  profession 
was  solely  confined  to  the  transcription  of  ancient 
writings  and  to  the  repairing  of  tattered  copies,  in 
contradistinction  to  the  common  scribes,  and  de- 
pending entirely  upon  the  exercise  of  their  art  as  a 

*  Muratori  Dissert.  Quadragesima  tertia,  vol.  iii.  column  849. 
t  Astle's   Origin   of  Writing,    p.    193. — See   also   Montfaucon 
Palaeographia  Graeca,  lib.  iv.  p.  263  et  319. 


44  BIBLIOMANIA. 

means  of  obtaining  a  subsistence,  leads  us  to  the 
conclusion  that  ancient  manuscripts  were  by  no 
means  so  very  scarce  in  those  days  ;  for  how  absurd 
and  useless  it  would  have  been  for  men  to  qualify 
themselves  for  transcribing  these  antiquated  and 
venerable  codices,  if  there  had  been  no  probability 
of  obtaining  them  to  transcribe.  The  fact  too  of  its 
becoming  the  subject  of  so  much  competition  proves 
how  great  was  the  demand  for  their  labor.* 

We  are  unable,  with  any  positive  result,  to  dis- 
cover the  exact  origin  of  the  secular  scribes,  though 
their  existence  may  probably  be  referred  to  a  very 
remote  period.  The  monks  seem  to  have  monopo- 
lized for  some  ages  the  "  Commercium  Librorum''^ 
and  sold  and  bartered  copies  to  a  considerable 
extent  among  each  other.  We  may  with  some 
reasonable  grounds,  however,  conjecture  that  the 
profession  was  flourishing  in  Saxon  times ;  for  we 
find  several  eminent  names  in  the  seventh  and 
eighth  centuries  who,  in  their  epistolary  corre- 
spondence, beg  their  friends  to  procure  transcripts 
for  them.  Benedict,  Bishop  of  Wearmouth,  pur- 
chased most  of  his  book  treasures  at  Rome,  which 
was  even  at  that  early  period  probably  a  famous 
mart  for  such  luxuries,  as  he  appears  to  have 
journeyed  there  for  that  express  purpose.  Some  of 
the  books  which  he  collected  were  presents  from 

*  In  the  year  1300  the  pay  of  a  common  scribe  was  about  one 
half-penny  a  day,  see  Stevenson's  Supple,  to  Bentham's  Hist,  of  the 
Church  of  Ely.  p.  51. 

fin  some  orders  the  monks  were  not  allowed  to  sell  their  books 
without  the  express  permission  of  their  superiors.  According  to  a 
statute  of  the  year  1264  the  Dominicans  were  strictly  prohibited  from 
selling  their  books  or  the  rules  of  their  order. — Martene  Thesaur. 
Nov.  Anecdot.  tom.  iv.  col.  1741,  et  col.  19 18. 


BIBLIOMANIA,  45 

his  foreign  friends  ;  but  most  of  them,  as  Bede  tells 
us,  were  bought  by  himself,  or  in  accordance  with 
his  instructions,  by  his  friends.*  Boniface,  the 
Saxon  missionary,  continually  writes  for  books  to 
his  associates  in  all  parts  of  Europe.  At  a  sub- 
sequent period  the  extent  and  importance  of  the 
profession  grew  amazingly ;  and  in  Italy  its  followers 
were  particularly  numerous  in  the  tenth  century,  as 
we  learn  from  the  letters  of  Gerbert,  afterwards 
Silvester  1 1.,  who  constantly  writes,  with  the  cravings 
of  a  bibliomaniac,  to  his  friends  for  books,  and  begs 
them  to  get  the  scribes,  who,  he  adds,  in  one  of  his 
letters,  may  be  found  in  all  parts  of  Italy,f  both  in 
town  and  in  the  country,  to  make  transcripts  of 
certain  books  for  him,  and  he  promises  to  reimburse 
his  correspondent  all  that  he  expends  for  the  same. 
These  public  scribes  derived  their  principal  em- 
ployment from  the  monks  and  the  lawyers ;  from 
the  former  in  transcribing  their  manuscripts,  and 
by  the  latter  in  drawing  up  their  legal  instruments. 
They  carried  on  their  avocation  at  their  own  homes 
like  other  artisans ;  but  sometimes  when  employed 
by  the  monks  executed  their  transcripts  within  the 
cloister,  where  they  were  boarded,  lodged,  and 
received  their  wages  till  their  work  was  done.  This 
was  especially  the  case  when  some  great  book  was 
to  be  copied,  of  rarity  and  price ;  thus  we  read  of 

*  Vita  Abbat.  Wear.  Ed.  Ware,  p.  26.  His  fine  copy  of  the  Cos- 
mographers  he  bought  at  Rome. — Roma  Benedictus  etnerat. 

t  Nosti  quot  Scriptores  in  Urbibus  aut  in  Agris  Italias  passim 
habeantur. — Ep.  cxxx.  See  also  Ep.  xliv.  where  he  speaks  of  having 
purchased  books  in  Italy,  Germany  and  Belgium,  at  considerable 
cost.  It  is  the  most  interesting  Bibliomanical  letter  in  the  whole 
collection. 


46  BIBLIOMANIA. 

Paulinus,  of  St.  Albans,  sending  into  distant  parts 
to  obtain  proficient  workmen,  who  were  paid  so 
much  per  diem  for  their  labor ;  their  wages  were 
generously  supplied  by  the  Lord  of  Redburn.* 

The  increase  of  knowledge  and  the  foundation 
of  the  universities  gave  birth  to  the  booksellers. 
Their  occupation  as  a  distinct  trade  originated  at  a 
period  coeval  with  the  foundation  of  these  public 
seminaries,  although  the  first  mention  that  I  am 
aware  of  is  made  by  Peter  of  Blois,  about  the  year 
1 1 70.  I  shall  have  occasion  to  speak  more  hereafter 
of  this  celebrated  scholar,  but  I  may  be  excused  for 
giving  the  anecdote  here,  as  it  is  so  applicable  to 
my  subject.  It  appears,  then,  that  whilst  remaining 
in  Paris  to  transact  some  important  matter  for  the 
King  of  England,  he  entered  the  shop  of  "a  public 
dealer  in  books " — for  be  it  known  that  the  arch- 
deacon was  always  on  the  search,  and  seldom  missed 
an  opportunity  of  adding  to  his  library — the  book- 
seller, Peter  tells  us,  offered  him  a  tempting  collec- 
tion on  Jurisprudence  ;  but  although  his  knowledge 
of  such  matters  was  so  great  that  he  did  not  require 
them  for  his  own  use,  he  thought  they  might  be 
serviceable  to  his  nephew,  and  after  bargaining  a 
little  about  the  price  he  counted  down  the  money 
agreed  upon  and  left  the  stall ;  but  no  sooner  was 
his  back  turned  than  the  Provost  of  Sexeburgh 
came  in  to  look  over  the  literary  stores  of  the 
stationer,  and  his  eye  meeting  the  recently  sold 
volume,  he  became  inspired  with  a  wish  to  possess 
it ;  nor  could  he,  on  hearing  it  was  bought  and 
paid  for  by  another,  suppress  his  anxiety  to  obtain 

*  Cottonian  MS.  in  the  Brit.  Mus. — Claudius,  E.  iv.  fo.  105,  b. 


BIBLIOMANIA.  47 

the  treasure;  but,  offering  more  money,  actually 
took  the  volume  away  by  force.  As  may  be  sup- 
posed, Archdeacon  Peter  was  sorely  annoyed  at 
this  behavior ;  and  "  To  his  dearest  companion 
and  friend  Master  Arnold  of  Blois,  Peter  of  Blois 
Archdeacon  of  Bath  sent  greeting,"  a  long  and 
learned  letter,  displaying  his  great  knowledge  of 
civil  law,  and  maintaining  the  illegality  of  the  pro- 
vost's conduct.*  The  casual  way  in  which  this  is 
mentioned  make  it  evident  that  the  ''publico  man- 
gone  Librorum  "  was  no  unusual  personage  in  those 
days,  but  belonged  to  a  common  and  recognized 
profession. 

The  vast  number  of  students  who,  by  the  founda- 
tion of  universities,  were  congregated  together, 
generated  of  course  a  proportionate  demand  for 
books,  which  necessity  or  luxury  prompted  them 
eagerly  to  purchase :  but  there  were  poor  as  well 
as  rich  students  educated  in  these  great  seminaries 
of  learning,  whose  pecuniary  means  debarred  them 
from  the  acquisition  of  such  costly  luxuries ;  and 
for  this  and  other  cogent  reasons  the  universities 
deemed  it  advantageous,  and  perhaps  expedient,  to 
frame  a  code  of  laws  and  regulations  to  provide 
alike  for  the  literary  wants  of  all  classes  and  de- 
grees. To  effect  this  they  obtained  royal  sanction 
to  take  the  trade  entirely  under  their  protection, 

*  Epist.  Ixxi.  p.  124,  Edit.  4to.  His  words  are — "Cum  Domi- 
nus  Rex  Anglorum  me  nuper  ad  Dominum  Regum  Francorum  nun- 
tium  distinasset,  libri  Legum  venales  Parisius  oblati  sunt  mihi  ab  illo 
B.  publico  man  gone  librorum  :  qui  cum  ad  opus  cujusdam  mei  nepo- 
tis  idoner  viderentur  conveni  cum  eo  de  pretio  et  eos  apud  venditorem 
dismittens,  ei  pretium  numeravi;  superveniente  vero  C.  Sexburgensi 
Praeposito  sicut  audini,  plus  oblulit  et  licitatione  vincens  libros  de 
domo  venditories  per  violentiam  absportauit. " 


48  BIBLIOMANIA. 

and  eventually  monopolized  a  sole  legislative  power 
over  the  Librarii. 

In  the  college  of  Navarre  a  great  quantity  of 
ancient  documents  are  preserved,  many  of  which 
relate  to  this  curious  subject.  They  were  deposited 
there  by  M.  Jean  Aubert  in  1623,  accompanied  by 
an  inventory  of  them,  divided  into  four  parts  by 
the  first  four  letters  of  the  alphabet.  In  the 
fourth,  under  D.  18,  there  is  a  chapter  entitled 
"  Des  Libraires  Appretiateurs,  Jurez  et  Enlumi- 
neurs,"  which  contains  much  interesting  matter  re- 
lating to  the  early  history  of  bookselling,*  These 
ancient  statutes,  collected  and  printed  by  the  Uni- 
versity in  the  year  i652,f  made  at  various  times, 
and  ranging  between  the  years  1275  and  1403, 
give  us  a  clear  insight  into  the  matter. 

The  nature  of  a  bookseller's  business  in  those 
days  required  no  ordinary  capacity,  and  no  shallow 
store  of  critical  acumen  ;  the  purchasing  of  manu- 
scripts, the  work  of  transcription,  the  careful  revisal, 
the  preparation  of  materials,  the  tasteful  illumina- 
tions, and  the  process  of  binding,  were  each  em- 
ployments requiring  some  talent  and  discrimination, 
and  we  are  not  surprised,  therefore,  that  the  avoca- 
tion of  a  dealer  and  fabricator  of  these  treasures 

*  Chevillier,  Origines  de  I'Imprimerie  de  Paris,  4to.  1694,  p,  301. 

t  "Actes  concernant  le  pouvoir  et  la  direction  de  I'Universite 
de  Paris  sur  les  Ecrivains  de  Livres  et  les  Imprimeurs  qui  leur  ont 
succede  comme  aussi  sur  les  Libraires  Relieurs  et  Enlumineurs,"  4to. 
1652,  p.  44.  It  is  very  rare,  a  copy  was  in  Biblioth.  Teller,  No. 
132,  p.  428.  A  statute  of  1275  is  given  by  Lambecii  Comment,  de 
Augus.  Biblioth.  Caesarea  Vendobon,  vol.  ii.  pp.  252 — 267.  The 
booksellers  are  called  "  Stationarii  or  Librarii ;  "  de  Stationariis,  sive 
Librarits  ut  Stationarus,  qui  vulgo  appellantur^  etc.  See  also  Du 
Cange,  vol.  vi.  col.  716. 


BIBLIOMANIA.  49 

should  be  highly  regarded,  and  dignified  into  a 
profession,  whose  followers  were  invested  with  all 
the  privileges,  freedoms  and  exemptions,  which  the 
masters  and  students  of  the  university  enjoyed.* 
But  it  required  these  conciliations  to  render  the 
restrictive  and  somewhat  severe  measures,  which 
she  imposed  on  the  bookselling  trade,  to  be  received 
with  any  degree  of  favor  or  submission.  For  whilst 
the  University  of  Paris,  by  whom  these  statutes 
were  framed,  encouraged  and  elevated  the  profes- 
sion of  the  librarii,  she  required,  on  the  other  hand, 
a  guarantee  of  their  wealth  and  mental  capacity, 
to  maintain  and  to  appreciate  these  important  con- 
cessions ;  the  bookseller  was  expected  indeed  to  be 
well  versed  in  all  branches  of  science,  and  to  be 
thoroughly  imbued  with  a  knowledge  of  those  sub- 
jects and  works  of  which  he  undertook  to  produce 
transcripts.f  She  moreover  required  of  him  testi- 
monials to  his  good  character,  and  efficient  security, 
ratified  by  a  solemn  oath  of  allegiance,  J  and  a  pro- 
mise to  observe  and  submit  to  all  the  present  and 
future  laws  and  regulations  of  the  university.  In 
some  cases,  it  appears  that  she  restricted  the  num- 
ber of  librarii,  though  this  fell  into  disuse  as  the 
wants  of  the  students  increased.  Twenty-four  seems 
to  have  been  the  original  number,§  which  is  suffi- 
ciently great  to  lead  to  the  conclusion  that  book- 
selling was  a  flourishing  trade  in  those  old  days. 

*  Chevillier,  p.  301,  to  whom  I  am  deeply  indebted  in  this  branch 
of  my  inquiry, 

t  Hist.  Lit.  de  la  France,  torn.  ix.  p.  84.     Chevillier,  p.  302. 

X  The  form  of  oath  is  given  in  full  in  the  statute  of  1323,  and  in 
that  of  1342,     Chevillier. 

$  Du  Breuil,  Le  Theatre  des  Antiq.  de  Paris,  4to.  1612,  p.  608. 


50  BIBLIOMANIA, 

By  the  statutes  of  the  university,  the  bookseller 
was  not  allowed  to  expose  his  transcripts  for  sale, 
without  first  submitting  them  to  the  inspection 
of  certain  officers  appointed  by  the  university,  and 
if  an  error  was  discovered,  the  copies  were  ordered 
to  be  burnt  or  a  fine  levied  on  them,  propor- 
tionate to  their  inaccuracy.  Harsh  and  stringent 
as  this  may  appear  at  first  sight,  we  shall  modify 
our  opinion,  on  recollecting  that  the  student  was 
in  a  great  degree  dependent  upon  the  care  of  the 
transcribers  for  the  fidelity  of  his  copies,  which 
rendered  a  rule  of  this  nature  almost  indispensable; 
nor  should  we  forget  the  great  service  it  bestowed 
in  maintaining  the  primitive  accuracy  of  ancient 
writers,  and  in  transmitting  them  to  us  through 
those  ages  in  their  original  purity.* 

In  these  times  of  free  trade  and  unrestrained 
commercial  policy,  we  shall  regard  less  favorably  a 
regulation  which  they  enforced  at  Paris,  depriving 
the  bookseller  of  the  power  of  fixing  a  price  upon 
his  own  goods.  Four  booksellers  were  appointed 
and  sworn  in  to  superintend  this  department,  and 
when  a  new  transcript  was  finished,  it  was  brought 
by  the  bookseller,  and  they  discussed  its  merits  and 
fixed  its  value,  which  formed  the  amount  the  book- 
seller was  compelled  to  ask  for  it ;  if  he  demanded 
of  his  customer  a  larger  sum,  it  was  deemed  a 
fraudulent  imposition,  and  punishable  as  such. 
Moreover,  as  an  advantage  to  the  students,  the 
bookseller  was  expected  to  make  a  considerable 
reduction  in  his  profits  in  supplying  them  with 
books ;  by  one  of  the  laws  of  the  university,  his 

*  Ibid.f  Hist.  Lit  de  la  France,  torn.  ix.  p.  84. 


BIBLIOMANIA.  51 

profit  on  each  volume  was  confined  to  four  deniers 
to  student,  and  six  deniers  to  a  common  purchaser. 
The  librarii  were  still  further  restricted  in  the  eco- 
nomy of  their  trade,  by  a  rule  which  forbade  any 
one  of  them  to  dispose  of  his  entire  stock  of  books 
without  the  consent  of  the  university ;  but  this,  I 
suspect,  implied  the  disposal  of  the  stock  and  trade 
together,  and  was  intended  to  intimate  that  the  in- 
troduction of  the  purchaser  would  not  be  allowed, 
without  the  cognizance  and  sanction  of  the  uni- 
versity.* Nor  was  the  bookseller  able  to  purchase 
books  without  her  consent,  lest  they  should  be  of 
an  immoral  or  heretical  tendency;  and  they  were 
absolutely  forbidden  to  buy  any  of  the  students, 
without  the  permission  of  the  rector. 

But  restricted  as  they  thus  were,  the  book  mer- 
chants nevertheless  grew  opulent,  and  transacted 
an  important  and  extensive  trade  ;  sometimes  they 
purchased  parts  and  sometimes  they  had  whole 
libraries  to  sell.f  Their  dealings  were  conducted 
with  unusual  care,  and  when  a  volume  of  peculiar 
rarity  or  interest  was  to  be  sold,  a  deed  of  convey- 
ance was  drawn  up  with  legal  precision,  in  the  pre- 
sence of  authorized  witnesses. 

In  those  days  of  high  prices  and  book  scarcity, 
the  poor  student  was  sorely  impeded  in  his  pro- 
gress ;  to  provide  against  these  disadvantages,  they 
framed  a  law  in  1342,  at  Paris,  compelling  all 
public  booksellers  to  keep  books  to  lend  out  on 
hire.     The  reader  will  be  surprised  at  the  idea  of 

*  ChevilHer,  p.  303. 

f  Martene  Anecd.  torn.  i.  p.  502.  Hist.  Lit.  de  la  France,  ix.  p. 
142. 


52  BIBLIOMANIA. 

a  circulating  library  in  the  middle  ages  !  but  there 
can  be  no  doubt  of  the  fact,  they  were  established 
at  Paris,  Toulouse,  Vienna,  and  Bologne.  These 
public  librarians,  too,  were  obliged  to  write  out  re- 
gular catalogues  of  their  books  and  hang  them  up 
in  their  shops,  with  the  prices  affixed,  so  that  the 
student  might  know  beforehand  what  he  had  to 
pay  for  reading  them.  I  am  tempted  to  give  a  few 
extracts  from  these  lists  : 

St.    Gregory's   Commentaries   upon  Job,  for  reading  loo 

pages,  8  sous. 
St.  Gregory's  Book  of  Homilies,  28  pages  for  12  deniers. 
Isidore's  De  Summa  bona,  24  pages,  12  deniers. 
Anselm's    De  Veritate  de   Libertate  Arbitrii,    40  pages, 

2  sous. 

Peter  Lombard's  Book  of  Sentences,  3  sous. 

Scholastic  History,  3  sous. 

Augustine's  Confessions,  21  pages,  4  deniers. 

Gloss  on  Matthew,  by  brother  Thomas  Aquinas,  57  pages, 

3  sous. 

Bible  Concordance,  9  sous. 
Bible,  10  sous.* 

This  rate  of  charge  was  also  fixed  by  the 
university,  and  the  students  borrowing  these  books 
were  privileged  to  transcribe  them  if  they  chose ; 
if  any  of  them  proved  imperfect  or  faulty,  they 
were  denounced  by  the  university,  and  a  fine  im- 
posed upon  the  bookseller  who  had  lent  out  the 
volume. 

This  potent  influence  exercised  by  the  univer- 
sities over  booksellers  became,  in  time,  much 
abused,  and  in  addition  to  these  commercial 
restraints,  they   assumed   a  still   less  warrantable 

*  Chevillier,  319,  who  gives  a  long  list,  printed  from  an  old 
register  of  the  University. 


BIBLIOMANIA.  53 

power  over  the  original  productions  of  authors ; 
and  became  virtually  the  public  censors  of  books, 
and  had  the  power  of  burning  or  prohibiting  any- 
work  of  questionable  orthodoxy.  In  the  time  of 
Henry  the  Second,  a  book  was  published  by  being 
read  over  for  two  or  three  successive  days,  before 
one  of  the  universities,  and  if  they  approved  of  its 
doctrines  and  bestowed  upon  it  their  approbation, 
it  was  allowed  to  be  copied  extensively  for  sale. 

Stringent  as  the  university  rules  were,  as 
regards  the  bookselling  trade,  they  were,  never- 
theless, sometimes  disregarded  or  infringed  ;  some 
ventured  to  take  more  for  a  book  than  the  sum 
allowed,  and,  by  prevarication  and  secret  contracts, 
eluded  the  vigilance  of  the  laws.*  Some  were 
still  bolder,  and  openly  practised  the  art  of  a  scribe 
and  the  profession  of  a  bookseller,  without  knowl- 
edge or  sanction  of  the  university.  This  gave 
rise  to  much  jealousy,  and  in  the  University  of 
Oxford,  in  the  year  1373,  they  made  a  decree 
forbidding  any  person  exposing  books  for  sale 
without  her  licence. f 

Now,  considering  all  these  usages  of  early  book- 
selling, their  numbers,  their  opulence,  and  above 
all,  the  circulating  libraries  which  the  liBrarii 
established,  can  we  still  retain  the  opinion  that 
books  were  so  inaccessible  in  those  ante-printing 
days,  when  we  know  that  for  a  few  sous  the  book- 
lover  could  obtain  good  and  authenticated  copies 
to  peruse,  or  transcribe  ?  It  may  be  advanced  that 
these  facts  solely  relate  to  universities,  and  were 

*  Chevillier,  303. 

f  Vet.  Stat.  Universit.  Oxoniae,  D.  fol.  75.     Archiv.  Bodl. 


54  BIBLIOMANIA. 

intended  merely  to  insure  a  supply  of  the  neces- 
sary books  in  constant  requisition  by  the  students, 
but  such  was  not  the  case ;  the  librarii  were 
essentially  public  Librorum  Venditores,  and  were 
glad  to  dispose  of  their  goods  to  any  who  could 
pay  for  them.  Indeed,  the  early  bibliomaniacs 
usually  flocked  to  these  book  marts  to  rummage 
over  the  stalls,  and  to  collect  their  choice  volumes. 
Richard  de  Bury  obtained  many  in  this  way,  both 
at  Paris  and  at  Rome. 

Of  the  exact  pecuniary  value  of  books  during 
the  middle  ages,  we  have  no  means  of  judging. 
The  few  instances  that  have  accidentally  been 
recorded  are  totally  inadequate  to  enable  us  to 
form  an  opinion.  The  extravagant  estimate  given 
by  some  as  to  the  value  of  books  in  those  days  is 
merely  conjectural,  as  it  necessarily  must  be,  when 
we  remember  that  the  price  was  guided  by  the 
accuracy  of  the  transcription,  the  splendor  of  the 
binding,  which  was  often  gorgeous  to  excess,  and 
by  the  beauty  and  richness  of  the  illuminations.* 
Many  of  the  manuscripts  of  the  middle  ages  are 
magnificent  in  the  extreme.  Sometimes  they 
inscribed  the  gospels  and  the  venerated  writings  of 
the  fathers  with  liquid  gold,  on  parchment  of  the 
richest  purple,f  and  adorned  its  brilliant  pages 
with  illuminations  of  exquisite  workmanship. 

*  The  Church  of  Norwich  paid  £22,  9s.  for  illuminating  a 
Graduate  and  Consuetudinary  in  1374. 

t  Isidore  Orig.,  cap.  ii. — Jerome,  in  his  Preface  to  Job,  writes, 
"  Habeant  quivolunt  veteres  libros,  vel  in  membranes  purpuras  auro 
argentique  colore  purpuros  aurum  liquiscit  in  Uteris."  Eddius 
Stephanus  in  his  Life  of  St.  Wilfrid,  cap  xvi.,  speaks  of  "  Quatuor 
Evangeliae  de  auro  purissimo  in  membranis  de  purpuratis  coloratis 
pro  animae  suae  remidis  scribere  jusset. "    Du  Cange,  vol.  iv.  p. 654. 


BIBLIOMANIA.  55 

The  first  specimens  we  have  of  an  attempt  to 
embellish  manuscripts  are  Egyptian.  It  was  a 
common  practice  among  them  at  first  to  color  the 
initial  letter  of  each  chapter  or  division  of  their 
work,  and  afterwards  to  introduce  objects  of  vari- 
ous kinds  into  the  body  of  the  manuscript. 

The  splendor  of  the  ancient  calligraphical  pro- 
ductions of  Greece,*  and  the  still  later  ones  of 
Rome,  bear  repeated  testimony  that  the  practice  of 
this  art  had  spread  during  the  sixth  century,  if  not 
earlier,  to  these  powerful  empires.  England  was 
not  tardy  in  embracing  this  elegant  art.  We  have 
many  relics  of  remote  antiquity  and  exquisite  work- 
manship existing  now,  which  prove  the  talent  and 
assiduity  of  our  early  Saxon  forefathers. 

In  Ireland  the  illuminating  art  was  profusely 
practised  at  a  period  as  early  as  the  commencement 
of  the  seventh  century,  and  in  the  eighth  we  find  it 
holding  forth  eminent  claims  to  our  respect  by  the 
beauty  of  their  workmanship,  and  the  chastity  of 
their  designs.  Those  well  versed  in  the  study  of 
these  ancient  manuscripts  have  been  enabled,  by 
extensive  but  minute  observation,  to  point  out  their 
different  characteristics  in  various  ages,  and  even 
to  decide  upon  the  school  in  which  a  particular 
manuscript  was  produced. 

These  illuminations,  which  render  the  early 
manuscripts    of   the   monkish   ages   so   attractive, 

See  also  Mabillon  Act.  Sanct.,  torn.  v.  p.  no,  who  is  of  opinion  that 
these  purple  MSS.  were  only  designed  for  princes ;  see  Nouveau 
Traite  de  Diplomatique,  and  Montfaucon  Palasog.  Graec,  pp.  45, 
218,  226,  for  more  on  this  subject. 

*  See  a  Fragjment  in  the  Brit.  Mus.  engfraved  in  Shaw's  Illu- 
minated Ornaments,  plate  i. 


56  BIBLIOMANIA. 

generally  exemplify  the  rude  ideas  and  tastes  of 
the  time.  In  perspective  they  are  wofully  deficient, 
and  manifest  but  little  idea  of  the  picturesque  or 
sublime ;  but  here  and  there  we  find  quite  a  gem  of 
art,  and,  it  must  be  owned,  we  are  seldom  tired  by 
monotony  of  coloring,  or  paucity  of  invention.  A 
study  of  these  parchment  illustrations  afford  con- 
siderable instruction.  Not  only  do  they  indicate 
the  state  of  the  pictorial  art  in  the  middle  ages, 
but  also  give  us  a  comprehensive  insight  into  the 
scriptural  ideas  entertained  in  those  times ;  and  the 
bible  student  may  learn  much  from  pondering  on 
these  glittering  pages ;  to  the  historical  student, 
and  to  the  lover  of  antiquities,  they  ofTer  a  verdant 
field  of  research,  and  he  may  obtain  in  this  way 
many  a  glimpse  of  the  manners  and  customs  of 
those  old  times  which  the  pages  of  the  monkish 
chroniclers  have  failed  to  record. 

But  all  this  prodigal  decoration  greatly  en- 
hanced the  price  of  books,  and  enabled  them  to 
produce  a  sum,  which  now  to  us  sounds  enormously 
extravagant.  Moreover,  it  is  supposed  that  the 
scarcity  of  parchment  limited  the  number  of  books 
materially,  and  prevented  their  increase  to  any 
extent ;  but  I  am  prone  to  doubt  this  assertion,  for 
my  own  observations  do  not  help  to  prove  it.  Mr. 
Hallam  says,  that  in  consequence  of  this,  "  an  un- 
fortunate practice  gained  ground  of  erasing  a  manu- 
script in  order  to  substitute  another  on  the  same 
skin.  This  occasioned,  probably,  the  loss  of  many 
ancient  authors  who  have  made  way  for  the  legends 
of  saints,  or  other  ecclesiastical  rubbish."*     But  we 

*  Middle  Ages,  vol.   ii.  p.  437.     Mr.  Maitland,  in  his  "  Dark 


BIBLIOMANIA.  57 

may  reasonably  question  this  opinion,  when  we 
consider  the  value  of  books  in  the  middle  ages,  and 
with  what  esteem  the  monks  regarded,  in  spite  of 
all  their  paganism,  those  "  heathen  dogs "  of  the 
ancient  world.  A  doubt  has  often  forced  itself  upon 
my  mind  when  turning  over  the  "  crackling  leaves  " 
of  many  ancient  MSS.,  whether  the  peculiarity 
mentioned  by  Montfaucon,  and  described  as  parch- 
ment from  which  former  writing  had  been  erased, 
may  not  be  owing,  in  many  cases,  to  its  mode  of 
preparation.  It  is  true,  a  great  proportion  of  the 
membrane  on  which  the  writings  of  the  middle  ages 
are  inscribed,  appear  rough  and  uneven,  but  I  could 
not  detect,  through  many  manuscripts  of  a  hundred 
folios — all  of  which  evinced  this  roughness — the  un- 
obliterated  remains  of  a  single  letter.  And  when  I 
have  met  with  instances,  they  appear  to  have  been 
short  writings — perhaps  epistles ;  for  the  monks 
were  great  correspondents,  and,  I  suspect,  kept 
economy  in  view,  and  often  carried  on  an  epistolary 
intercourse,  for  a  considerable  time,  with  a  very 
limited  amount  of  parchment,  by  erasing  the  letter 
to  make  room  for  the  answer.  This,  probably,  was 
usual  where  the  matter  of  their  correspondence 
was  of  no  especial  importance ;  so  that,  what  our 
modern  critics,  being  emboldened  by  these  faint 
traces  of  former  writing,  have  declared  to  possess 
the  classic  appearance  of  hoary  antiquity,  may  be 
nothing  more  than  a  complimentary  note,  or  the 
worthless  accounts  of  some  monastic  expenditure. 
But,  careful  as  they  were,  what  would  these  monks 

Ages,"  enters  into  a  consideration  of  this  matter  with  much  critical 
learning  and  ingenuity. 


58  BIBLIOMANIA. 

have  thought  of  "  paper-sparing  Pope,"  who  wrote 
his  Iliad  on  small  pieces  of  refuse  paper  ?  One  of 
the  finest  passages  in  that  translation,  which  des- 
cribes the  parting  of  Hector  and  Andromache,  is 
written  on  part  of  a  letter  which  Addison  had 
franked,  and  is  now  preserved  in  the  British 
Museum.  Surely  he  could  afford,  these  old  monks 
would  have  said,  to  expend  some  few  shillings  for 
paper,  on  which  to  inscribe  that  for  which  he  was 
to  receive  his  thousand  pounds. 

But  far  from  the  monastic  manuscripts  displaying 
a  scantiness  of  parchment,  we  almost  invariably  find 
an  abundant  margin,  and  a  space  between  each  line 
almost  amounting  to  prodigality ;  and  to  say  that 
the  "vellum  was  considered  more  precious  than  the 
genius  of  the  author,"*  is  absurd,  when  we  know 
that,  in  the  thirteenth  and  fourteenth  centuries,  a 
dozen  skins  of  parchment  could  be  bought  for  six- 
pence ;  whilst  that  quantity  written  upon,  if  the 
subject  possessed  any  interest  at  all,  would  fetch 
considerably  more,  there  always  being  a  demand 
and  ready  sale  for  books.f  The  supposition,  there- 
fore, that  the  monastic  scribes  erased  classical 
manuscripts  for  the  sake  of  the  material,  seems 
altogether  improbable,  and  certainly  destitute  of 
proof.  It  is  true,  many  of  the  classics,  as  we  have 
them  now,   are  but  mere  fragments  of  the  original 

•  D'Israeli  Amenities  of  Lit.,  vol.  i.  p.  358. 

t  The  Precentor's  accounts  of  the  Church  of  Norwich  contain 
the  following  items: — 1300,  5  dozen  parchment,  2s.  6d.,  40  lbs.  of 
ink,  4s.  4d.,  i  gallon  of  vini  decrili,  3^.,  4  lbs.  of  corporase,  4  lbs.  of 
galls,  2  lbs.  of  gum  arab,  3^.  4</.,  to  make  ink.  I  dismiss  these  facts 
with  the  simple  question  they  naturally  excite :  that  if  parchment 
was  so  very  scarce,  what  on  earth  did  the  monk  want  with  all  this  ink  ? 


BIBLIOMANIA.  59 

work.  For  this,  however,  we  have  not  to  blame 
the  monks,  but  barbarous  invaders,  ravaging  flames, 
and  the  petty  animosities  of  civil  and  religious 
warfare  for  the  loss  of  many  valuable  works  of  the 
classics.  By  these  means,  one  hundred  and  five 
books  of  Livy  have  been  lost  to  us,  probably  for- 
ever. For  the  thirty  which  have  been  preserved,  our 
thanks  are  certainly  due  to  the  monks.  It  was  from 
their  unpretending  and  long-forgotten  libraries  that 
many  such  treasures  were  brought  forth  at  the 
revival  of  learning,  in  the  fifteenth  century,  to 
receive  the  admiration  of  the  curious,  and  the  study 
of  the  erudite  scholar.  In  this  way  Poggio  Brac- 
ciolini  discovered  many  inestimable  manuscripts. 
Leonardo  Aretino  writes  in  rapturous  terms  on 
Poggio's  discovery  of  a  perfect  copy  of  Quintillian. 
"What  a  precious  acquisition  !"  he  exclaims,  "what 
unthought  of  pleasure  to  behold  Quintillian  perfect 
and  entire!"*  In  the  same  letter  we  learn  that 
Poggio  had  discovered  Asconius  and  Flaccus  in  the 
monastery  of  St.  Gall,  whose  inhabitants  regarded 
them  without  much  esteem.  In  the  monastery  of 
Langres,  his  researches  were  rewarded  by  a  copy  of 
Cicero's  Oration  for  Caecina.  With  the  assistance 
of  Bartolomeo  di  Montepulciano,  he  discovered 
Silius  Italicus,  Lactantius,  Vegetius,  Nonius  Mar- 
cellus,  Ammianus  Marcellus,  Lucretius,  and  Colu- 
mella, and  he  found  in  a  monastery  at  Rome  a 
complete  copy  of  Turtullian.f  In  the  fine  old 
monastery  of  Casino,  so  renowned  for  its  classical 
library  in  former  days,  he  met  with  Julius  Frontinus 

*  Leonardi  Aretini  Epist.  1.  iv.  ep.  v. 

t  Mehi  Praefatio  ad  vit  Ambrosii  Traversarii,  p.  xxxix. 


6o  BIBLIOMANIA. 

and  Firmicus,  and  transcribed  them  with  his  own 
hand.  At  Cologne  he  obtained  a  copy  of  Petronius 
Arbiter.  But  to  these  we  may  add  Calpurnius's 
Bucolic,*  Manilius,  Lucius  Septimus,  Coper,  Euty- 
chius,  and  Probus.  He  had  anxious  hopes  of 
adding  a  perfect  Livy  to  the  list,  which  he  had  been 
told  then  existed  in  a  Cistercian  Monastery  in 
Hungary,  but,  unfortunately,  he  did  not  prosecute 
his  researches  in  this  instance  with  his  usual  energy. 
The  scholar  has  equally  to  regret  the  loss  of  a 
perfect  Tacitus,  which  Poggio  had  expectations  of 
from  the  hands  of  a  German  monk.  We  may  still 
more  deplore  this,  as  there  is  every  probability  that 
the  monks  actually  possessed  the  precious  volume.f 
Nicolas  of  Treves,  a  contemporary  and  friend  of 
Poggio's,  and  who  was  infected,  though  in  a  slight 
degree,  with  the  same  passionate  ardor  for  col- 
lecting ancient  manuscripts,  discovered,  whilst  ex- 
ploring the  German  monasteries,  twelve  comedies 
of  Plautus,  and  a  fragment  of  Aulus  Gellius.J  Had 
it  not  been  for  the  timely  aid  of  these  great  men, 
many  would  have  been  irretrievably  lost  in  the  many 
revolutions  and  contentions  that  followed  ;  and,  had 
such  been  the  case,  the  monks,  of  course,  would 
have  received  the  odium,  and  on  their  heads  the 
spleen  of  the  disappointed  student  would  have  been 
prodigally  showered. 

*  Mehi  Praef.,  pp.  xlviii. — xlix. 

t  A  MS.  containing  five  books  of  Tacitus  which  had  been 
deemed  lost  was  found  in  Germany  during  the  pontificate  of  Leo  X. , 
and  deposited  in  the  Laurentian  library  at  Florence. — Mehi  Prcef.  p. 
xlvii.  See  Shepard's  Life  of  Poggio,  p.  104,  to  whom  I  am  much 
indebted  for  these  curious  facts. 

X  Shepard's  Life  of  Poggio,  p.  101. 


CHAPTER  IV. 

Canterbury  Monastery.  —  Theodore  of  Tarsus. — 
Tatwine. — Nothelm.  — St.  Dunstan. — j^lfric. — 
Lanfranc.  —  Anselm.  —  St.  Augustine s  books.  — 
Henry  de  Estria  and  his  Catalogue. — Chiclely. — 
Sellinge, — Rochester. — Gundulph,  a  Bible  Student. 
— Radulphus. — Ascelin  of  Dover. — Glanvill,  etc. 

In  the  foregoing  chapters  I  have  endeavored 
to  give  the  reader  an  insight  into  the  means  by 
which  the  monks  multiplied  their  books,  the  oppor- 
tunities they  had  of  obtaining  them,  the  rules  of 
their  libraries  and  scriptoria,  and  the  duties  of  a 
monkish  librarian.  I  now  proceed  to  notice  some 
of  the  English  monastic  libraries  of  the  middle 
ages,  and  by  early  records  and  old  manuscripts 
inquire  into  their  extent,  and  revel  for  a  time 
among  the  bibliomaniacs  of  the  cloisters.  On  the 
spot  where  Christianity — more  than  twelve  hundred 
years  ago — first  obtained  a  permanent  footing  in 
Britain,  stands  the  proud  metropolitan  cathedral  of 
Canterbury — a  venerable  and  lasting  monument  of 
ancient  piety  and  monkish  zeal.  St.  Augustine, 
who  brought  over  the  glad  tidings  of  the  Christian 
faith  in  the  year  596,  founded  that  noble  structure 


62  BIBLIOMANIA. 

on  the  remains  of  a  church  which  Roman  Christians 
in  remote  times  had  built  there.  To  write  the 
literary  history  of  its  old  monastery  would  spread 
over  more  pages  than  this  volume  contains,  so 
many  learned  and  bookish  abbots  are  mentioned  in 
its  monkish  annals.  Such,  however,  is  beyond  the 
scope  of  my  present  design,  and  I  have  only  to  turn 
over  those  ancient  chronicles  to  find  how  the  love 
of  books  flourished  in  monkish  days  ;  so  that,  whilst 
I  may  here  and  there  pass  unnoticed  some  ingeni- 
ous author,  or  only  casually  remark  upon  his  talents, 
all  that  relate  to  libraries  or  book-collecting,  to 
bibliophiles  or  scribes,  I  shall  carefully  record  ;  and, 
I  think,  from  the  notes  now  lying  before  me,  and 
which  I  am  about  to  arrange  in  something  like 
order,  the  reader  will  form  a  very  different  idea  of 
monkish  libraries  than  he  previously  entertained. 
The  name  that  first  attracts  our  attention  in  the 
early  history  of  Canterbury  Church  is  that  of 
Theodore  of  Tarsus,  the  father  of  Anglo-Saxon 
literature,  and  certainly  the  first  who  introduced 
bibliomania  into  this  island  ;  for  when  he  came  on 
his  mission  from  Rome  in  the  year  668  he  brought 
with  him  an  extensive  library,  containing  many 
Greek  and  Latin  authors,  in  a  knowledge  of  which 
he  was  thoroughly  initiated.  Bede  tells  us  that 
he  was  well  skilled  in  metrical  art,  astronomy,  arith- 
metic, church  music,  and  the  Greek  and  Latin 
languages.*     At  his  death  f  the  library  of  Christ 

•  Bede,  iv.  cap.  ii. 

t  He  died  in  690,  and  was  succeeded  by  Bertwold,  Abbot  of 
Reculver,  Saxon  Chronicle ^  Ingram,  p.  57.  Bede  speaks  of  Bertwold 
as  "well  learned  in  Scripture  and  Ecclesiastical  Literature." — Eccl. 
Hist.  b.  V,  c.  viii. 


BIBLIOMANIA.  63 

Church  Monastery  was  enriched  by  his  valuable 
books,  and  in  the  time  of  old  Lambarde  some  of 
them  still  remained.  He  says,  in  his  quaint  way, 
"  The  Reverend  Father  Mathew,  nowe  Archbishop 
of  Canterburie,  whose  care  for  the  conservation  of 
learned  monuments  can  never  be  sufficiently  com- 
mended, shewed  me,  not  long  since,  the  Psalter  of 
David,  and  sundrie  homilies  in  Greek  ;  Homer  also 
and  some  other  Greeke  authors  beautifully  wrytten 
on  thicke  paper,  with  the  name  of  this  Theodore 
prefixed  in  the  fronte,  to  whose  librarie  he  reason- 
ably thought,  being  thereto  led  by  shew  of  great 
antiquitie  that  they  sometimes  belonged."* 

Tatwine  was  a  great  book  lover,  if  not  a  biblio- 
maniac. "He  was  renowned  for  religious  wisdom, 
and  notably  learned  in  Sacred  Writ."f  If  he  wrote 
the  many  pieces  attributed  to  him,  his  pen  must 
have  been  prolific  and  his  reading  curious  and 
diversified.  He  is  said  to  have  composed  on  profane 
and  sacred  subjects,  but  his  works  were  unfortun- 
ately destroyed  by  the  Danish  invaders,  and  a  book 
of  poems  and  one  of  enigmas  are  all  that  have 
escaped  their  ravages.  The  latter  work,  preserved 
in  our  National  Library,  contains  many  curious 
hints,  illustrative  of  the  manners  of  those  remote 
days.  J 

Nothelm,  or  the  Bold  Helm,  succeeded  this 
interesting  author ;  he  was  a  learned  and  pious 
priest  of  London.    The  bibliomaniac  will  somewhat 

♦  Preambulation  of  Kent,  4to.  1576,  p.  233.  Parker's  Ant.  Brit, 
p.  80. 

t  He  was  consecrated  on  the  loth  of  June,  731,  Bede,  v.  c.  xxiii. 

X  M.S.  Reg.  12,  c.  xxiii.  I  know  of  no  other  copy.  Lelandsays 
that  he  saw  a  copy  at  Glastonbury. 


64  BIBLIOMANIA. 

envy  the  avocation  of  this  worthy  monk  whilst 
searching  over  the  rich  treasures  of  the  Roman 
archives,  from  whence  he  gleaned  much  valuable 
information  to  aid  Bede  in  compiling  his  history  of 
the  English  Church.*  Not  only  was  he  an  industri- 
ous scribe  but  also  a  talented  author,  if  we  are  to 
believe  Pits,  who  ascribes  to  him  several  works, 
with  a  Life  of  St.  Augustine.f 

It  is  well  known  that  St.  Dunstan  was  an  ingeni- 
ous scribe,  and  so  passionately  fond  of  books,  that 
we  may  unhesitatingly  proclaim  him  a  bibliomaniac. 
He  was  a  native  of  Wessex,  and  resided  with  his 
father  near  Glastonbury  Abbey,  which  holy  spot 
many  a  legendary  tale  rendered  dear  to  his  youthful 
heart.  He  entered  the  Abbey,  and  devoted  his 
whole  time  to  reading  the  wondrous  lives  and 
miracles  of  ascetic  men  till  his  mind  became  excited 
to  a  state  of  insanity  by  the  many  marvels  and 
prodigies  which  they  unfolded  ;  so  that  he  acquired 
among  the  simple  monks  the  reputation  of  one 
holding  constant  and  familiar  intercourse  with  the 
beings  of  another  world.  On  his  presentation  to 
the  king,  which  was  effected  by  the  influence  of 
his  uncle  Athelm,  Archbishop  of  Canterbury,  he 
soon  became  a  great  favorite,  but  excited  so  much 
jealousy  there,  that  evil  reports  were  industri- 
ously spread  respecting  him.  He  was  accused  of 
practising  magical  arts  and  intriguing  with  the 
devil.  This  induced  him  to  retire  again  into  the 
seclusion  of  a  monastic  cell,  which  he  constructed 

*  Bede's  Eccl.  Hist.  Prologue. 

t  Pitseus  Angliae  Scrip.  1619,  p.  141.  Dart's  Hist.  Canterbury, 
p.  102. 


BIBLIOMANIA.  65 

so  low  that  he  could  scarcely  stand  upright  in 
it.  It  was  large  enough,  however,  to  hold  his 
forge  and  other  apparatus,  for  he  was  a  proficient 
worker  in  metals,  and  made  ornaments,  and  bells 
for  his  church.  He  was  very  fond  of  music, 
and  played  with  exquisite  skill  upon  the  harp.* 
But  what  is  more  to  our  purpose,  his  biographer 
tells  us  that  he  was  remarkably  skilful  in  writing 
and  illuminating,  and  transcribed  many  books, 
adorning  them  with  beautiful  paintings,  whilst  in 
this  little  cell.f  One  of  them  is  preserved  in  the 
Bodleian  Library  at  Oxford.  On  the  front  is  a 
painting  of  St.  Dunstan  kneeling  before  our  Saviour, 
and  at  the  top  is  written  ''  Pictura  et  Scriptura 
hujus  pagine  subtas  visi  est  de  propria  manu  set 
Dunstaniy%  But  in  the  midst  of  these  ingenious 
pursuits  he  did  not  forget  to  devote  many  hours  to 
the  study  of  the  Holy  Scriptures,  as  also  to  the 
diligent  transcription  and  correction  of  copies  of 
them,§  and  thus  arming  himself  with  the  sacred 
word,  he  was  enabled  to  withstand  the  numerous 
temptations  which  surrounded  him.  Sometimes 
the  devil  appeared  as  a  man,  and  at  other  times  he 
was  still  more  severely  tempted  by  the  visitations 
of  a  beautiful  woman,  who  strove  by  the  most 
alluring  blandishments  to  draw  that  holy  man  from 
the  paths  of  Christian  rectitude.  In  the  tenth 
century  such  eminent  virtues  could  not  pass  un- 

*  Cottonian  MS.  Cleopatra,  B.  xiii.  fo.  70. 

t  W.  Malm,  de  Vita,  Dunst.  ap.  Leland,  Script,  torn.  I.  p.  162. 
Cotton.  MS.  Fanstin,  B.  13. 

X  Strutt's  Saxon.  Antiq.  vol.  i,  p.  105,  plate  xviii.  See  also 
Hicke's  Saxon  Grammar,  p.  104. 

$  MS.  Cotton.,  Cleop.  b.  xiii.  fo.  69.  Mabd.  Acta  Sancto.  vii.  663. 


66  BIBLIOMANIA. 

rewarded,  and  he  was  advanced  to  the  Archbishop- 
ric of  Canterbury  in  the  year  961,  but  his  after  life 
is  that  of  a  saintly  politician,  and  displays  nothing 
that  need  be  mentioned  here. 

In  the  year  969,*  ^Ifric,  abbot  of  St.  Alban's, 
was  elected  archbishop  of  Canterbury.  His  iden- 
tity is  involved  in  considerable  doubt  by  the  many 
contemporaries  who  bore  that  name,  some  of 
whom,  like  him,  were  celebrated  for  their  talent 
and  erudition ;  but,  leaving  the  solution  of  this 
difficulty  to  the  antiquarian,  we  are  justified  in 
saying  that  he  was  of  noble  family,  and  received 
his  education  under  Ethelwold,  at  Abingdon,  about 
the  year  960.  He  accompanied  his  master  to  Win- 
chester, and  Elphegus,  bishop  of  that  see,  enter- 
tertained  so  high  an  opinion  of  ^Elfric's  learning 
and  capacity,  that  he  sent  him  to  superintend  the 
recently  founded  monastery  of  Cerne,  in  Devon- 
shire. He  there  spent  all  his  hours,  unoccupied 
by  the  duties  of  his  abbatical  office,  in  the  tran- 
scription of  books  and  the  nobler  avocations  of  an 
author.  He  composed  a  Latin  Grammar,  a  work 
which  has  won  for  him  the  title  of  "  The  Gram- 
marian" and  he  greatly  helped  to  maintain  the 
purity  of  the  Christian  church  by  composing  a 
large  collection  of  homilies,  which  became  exceed- 
ingly popular  during  the  succeeding  century,  and 
are  yet  in  existence.  The  preface  to  these  homilies 
contain  several  very  curious  passages  illustrative  of 
the  mode  of  publication  resorted  to  by  the  monkish 
authors,  and  on  that  account  I  am  tempted  to  make 
the  following  extracts  : 

•  Saxon  Chron.  by  Ingram,  171. 


BIBLIOMANIA.  67 

"  I,  ^^Ifric,  the  scholar  of  Ethelwold,  to  the  cour- 
teous and  venerable  Bishop  Sigeric,  in  the  Lord. 

"  Although  it  may  appear  to  be  an  attempt  of 
some  rashness  and  presumption,  yet  have  I  ventured 
to  translate  this  book  out  of  the  Latin  writers,  es- 
pecially those  of  the '  Holy  Scriptures,'  into  our  com- 
mon language ;  for  the  edification  of  the  ignorant, 
who  only  understand  this  language  when  it  is  either 
read  or  heard.  Wherefore  I  have  not  used  obscure 
or  unintelligible  words,  but  given  the  plain  English. 
By  which  means  the  hearts,  both  of  the  readers  and 
of  the  hearers,  may  be  reached  more  easily ;  because 
they  are  incapable  of  being  otherwise  instructed, 
than  in  their  native  tongue.  Indeed,  in  our  trans- 
lation, we  have  not  ever  been  so  studious  to  render 
word  for  word,  as  to  give  the  true  sense  and 
meaning  of  our  authors.  Nevertheless,  we  have 
used  all  diligent  caution  against  deceitful  errors, 
that  we  may  not  be  found  seduced  by  any  heresy, 
nor  blinded  by  any  deceit.  For  we  have  followed 
these  authors  in  this  translation,  namely,  St.  Austin 
of  Hippo,  St.  Jerome,  Bede,  Gregory,  Smaragdus, 
and  sometimes  Hay  mo,  whose  authority  is  admitted 
to  be  of  great  weight  with  all  the  faithful.  Nor 
have  we  only  expounded  the  treatise  of  the  gos- 
pels;... but  have  also  described  the  passions  and 
lives  of  the  saints,  for  the  use  of  the  unlearned  of 
this  nation.  We  have  placed  forty  discourses  in 
this  volume,  believing  this  will  be  sufficient  for  one 
year,  if  they  be  recited  entirely  to  the  faithful,  by 
the  ministers  of  the  Lord.  But  the  other  book 
which  we  have  now  taken  in  hand  to  compose 
will  contain  those  passions  or  treatises  which  are 


68  BIBLIOMANIA. 

omitted  in  this  volume."...  "  Now,  if  any  one  find 
fault  with  our  translation,  that  we  have  not  always 
given  word  for  word,  or  that  this  translation  is  not 
so  full  as  the  treatise  of  the  authors  themselves,  or 
that  in  handling  of  the  gospels  we  have  run  them 
over  in  a  method  not  exactly  conformable  to  the 
order  appointed  in  the  church,  let  him  compose  a 
book  of  his  own ;  by  an  interpretation  of  deeper 
learning,  as  shall  best  agree  with  his  understanding, 
this  only  I  beseech  him,  that  he  may  not  pervert 
this  version  of  mine,  which  I  hope,  by  the  grace  of 
God,  without  any  boasting,  I  have,  according  to 
the  best  of  my  skill,  performed  with  all  diligence. 
Now,  I  most  earnestly  entreat  your  goodness,  my 
most  gentle  father  Sigeric,  that  you  will  vouchsafe 
to  correct,  by  your  care,  whatever  blemishes  of 
malignant  heresy,  or  of  dark  deceit,  you  shall  meet 
with  in  my  translation,  and  then  permit  this  little 
book  to  be  ascribed  to  your  authority,  and  not 
to  the  meanness  of  a  person  of  my  unworthy 
character.  Farewell  in  the  Almighty  God  con- 
tinually.    Amen."* 

I  have  before  alluded  to  the  care  observed  by 
the  scribes  in  copying  their  manuscripts,  and  the 
moderns  may  deem  themselves  fortunate  that  they 
did  so  ;  for  although  many  interpolations,  or  emen- 
dations, as  they  called  them,  occur  in  monkish  tran- 
scripts, on  the  whole,  their  integrity,  in  this  respect, 
forms  a  redeeming  quality  in  connexion  with  their 
learning.  In  another  preface,  affixed  to  the  second 
collection  of  his  homilies,  ^Ifric  thus  explains  his 
design  in  translating  them  : 

*  Landsdowne  MS.  in  Brit.  Mus.  373,  vol.  iv. 


BIBLIOMANIA.  69 

"^Ifric,  a  monk  and  priest,  although  a  man  of 
less  abilities  than  are  requisite  for  one  in  such 
orders,  was  sent,  in  the  days  of  King  ^thelred, 
from  Alphege,  the  bishop  and  successor  of  ^thel- 
wold,  to  a  monastery  which  is  called  Cernel,  at  the 
desire  of  ^Ethelmer,  the  Thane,  whose  noble  birth 
and  goodness  is  everywhere  known.  Then  ran  it 
in  my  mind,  I  trust,  through  the  grace  of  God, 
that  I  ought  to  translate  this  book  out  of  the 
Latin  tongue  into  the  English  language  not  upon 
presumption  of  great  learning,  but  because  I  saw 
and  heard  much  error  in  many  English  books, 
which  ignorant  men,  through  their  simplicity,  es- 
teemed great  wisdom,  and  because  it  grieved  me 
that  they  neither  knew,  nor  had  the  gospel  learning 
in  their  writing,  except  from  those  men  that  under- 
stood Latin,  and  those  books  which  are  to  be  had 
of  King  Alfred's,  which  he  skilfully  translated  from 
Latin  into  English."* 

From  these  extracts  we  may  gain  some  idea  of 
the  state  of  learning  in  those  days,  and  they  would 
seem,  in  some  measure,  to  justify  the  opinion,  that 
the  laity  paid  but  little  attention  to  such  matters, 
and  I  more  anxiously  present  the  reader  with  these 
scraps,  because  they  depict  the  state  of  literature 
in  those  times  far  better  than  a  volume  of  conjec- 
ture could  do.  It  is  not  consistent  with  my  design 
to  enter  into  an  analysis  of  these  homilies.  Let 
the  reader,  however,  draw  some  idea  of  their  nature 
from  the  one  written  for  Easter  Sunday,  which  has 
been  deemed  sufficient  proof  that  the  Saxon  Church 
ever  denied  the  Romish  doctrine  of  transubstanti- 

*  Landsdowne  MS.  in  Brit.  Mus.  373,  vol.  iv. 


70  BIBLIOMANIA. 

ation ;  for  he  there  expressly  states,  in  terms  so 
plain  that  all  the  sophistry  of  the  Roman  Catholic 
writers  cannot  pervert  its  obvious  meaning,  that 
the  bread  and  wine  is  only  typical  of  the  body  and 
blood  of  our  Saviour. 

To  one  who  has  spent  much  time  in  reading 
the  lives  and  writings  of  the  monkish  theologians, 
how  refreshing  is  such  a  character  as  that  of  ^If ric's. 
Often,  indeed,  will  the  student  close  the  volumes 
of  those  old  monastic  writers  with  a  sad,  depressed, 
and  almost  broken  heart ;  so  often  will  he  find  men 
who  seem  capable  of  better  things,  who  here  and 
there  breathe  forth  all  the  warm  aspirations  of  a 
devout  and  Christian  heart,  bowed  down  and 
grovelling  in  the  dust,  as  it  were,  to  prove  their 
blind  submission  to  the  Pope,  thinking,  poor  fel- 
lows ! — for  from  my  very  heart  I  pity  them — that 
by  so  doing  they  were  preaching  that  humility  so 
acceptable  to  the  Lord. 

Cheering  then,  to  the  heart  it  is  to  find  this 
monotony  broken  by  such  an  instance,  and  although 
we  find  ^Ifric  occasionally  diverging  into  the  paths 
of  papistical  error,  he  spreads  a  ray  of  light  over 
the  gloom  of  those  Saxon  days,  and  offers  pleasing 
evidence  that  Christ  never  forsook  his  church ; 
that  even  amidst  the  peril  and  darkness  of  those 
monkish  ages  there  were  some  who  mourned, 
though  it  might  have  been  in  a  monastery,  sub- 
missive to  a  Roman  Pontiff,  the  depravity  and  cor- 
ruption with  which  the  heart  of  man  had  marred  it. 

To  still  better  maintain  the  discipline  of  the 
church,  he  wrote  a  set  of  canons,  which  he  ad- 
dressed  to  Wulfin,  or  Wulfsine,  bishop  of  Sher- 


BIBLIOMANIA.  71 

bourne.  With  many  of  the  doctrines  advocated 
therein,  the  protestant  will  not  agree ;  but  the 
bibliophile  will  admit  that  he  gave  an  indication  of 
his  love  of  books  by  the  21st  Canon,  which  directs 
that,  "  Before  a  priest  can  be  ordained,  he  must  be 
armed  with  the  sacred  books,  for  the  spiritual 
battle,  namely,  a  Psalter,  Book  of  Epistles,  Book  of 
Gospels,  the  Missal  Book,  Books  of  Hymns,  the 
Manual,  or  Enchiridion,  the  Gerim,  the  Passional, 
the  Paenitential,  and  the  Lectionary,  or  Reading 
Book;  these  the  diligent  priest  requires,  and  let 
him  be  careful  that  they  are  all  accurately  written, 
and  free  from  faults."  * 

About  the  same  time,  ^Ifric  wrote  a  treatise 
on  the  Old  and  New  Testaments,  and  in  it  we  find 
an  account  of  his  labors  in  Biblical  Literature.  He 
did  more  in  laying  open  the  holy  mysteries  of  the 
gospel  to  the  perusal  of  the  laity,  by  translating 
them  into  the  Saxon  tongue,  than  any  other  before 
him.  He  gave  them,  in  a  vernacular  version,  the 
Pentateuch,  Joshua,  Judges,  Esther,  Job,  Judith, 
two  Books  of  Maccabees,  and  a  portion  of  the 
Book  of  Kings,  and  it  is  for  these  labors,  above 
all  others,  that  the  bible  student  will  venerate  his 
name,  but  he  will  look,  perhaps,  anxiously,  hope- 
fully, to  these  early  attempts  at  Bible  propagation, 
and  expect  to  observe  the  ecclesiastical  orders,  at 
least,  shake  off  a  little  of  their  absurd  dependence 
on  secondary  sources  for  biblical  instruction.  But, 
no ;  they  still  sadly  clung  to  traditional  interpre- 
tation ;  they  read  the  Word  of  God  mystified  by 
the   fathers,    good   men,    many   of    them,   devout 

*  Can.  21,  p.  577,  vol.  i. 


72  BIBLIOMANIA. 

and  holy  saints,  but  why  approach  God  through 
man,  when  we  have  His  own  prescription,  in  sweet 
encouraging  words,  to  come,  however  humble  or 
lowly  we  may  be,  to  His  throne,  and  ask  with  our 
own  lips  for  those  blessings  so  needful  for  the  soul, 
i^lfric,  in  a  letter  addressed  to  Sigwerd,  prefixed 
to  his  Treatise  on  the  Old  and  New  Testament, 
thus  speaks  of  his  biblical  labors  : 

"  Abbot  Elfricke  greeteth  friendly,  Sigwerd  at 
last  Heolon.  True  it  is  I  tell  thee  that  very  wise  is 
he  who  speaketh  by  his  doings  ;  and  well  proceedeth 
he  doth  with  God  and  the  world  who  furnisheth 
himselfe  with  good  works.  And  very  plaine  it  is 
in  holy  scripture,  that  holy  men  employed  in  well 
doing  were  in  this  world  held  in  good  reputation, 
and  as  saints  now  enjoy  the  kingdom  of  heaven, 
and  the  remembrance  of  them  continueth  for  ever, 
because  of  their  consent  with  God  and  relying  on 
him,  carelesse  men  who  lead  their  life  in  all  idleness 
and  so  end  it,  the  memory  of  them  is  forgotten  in 
holy  writ,  saving  that  the  Old  Testament  records 
their  ill  deeds  and  how  they  were  therefore  com- 
demned.  Thou  hast  oft  entreated  me  for  English 
Scripture.. ..and  when  I  was  with  thee  great  mone 
thou  madest  that  thou  couldst  get  none  of  my 
writings.  Now  will  I  that  thou  have  at  least  this 
little,  since  knowledge  is  so  acceptable  to  thee,  and 
thou  wilt  have  it  rather  than  be  altogether  without 

my  books God   bestoweth   sevenfold   grace  on 

mankind,  (whereof  I  have  already  written  in  an- 
other English  Treatise,")  as  the  prophet  Isaiah  hath 
recorded  in  the  book  of  nis  prophesie."  In  speaking 
of  the  remaining  books  of  the  Pentateuch,  he  does 


BIBLIOMANIA,  73 

so  in  a  cursory  manner,  and  excuses  himself  be- 
cause he  had  "written  thereof  more  at  large." 
"The  book  which  Moses  wrote,  called  the  book  of 
Joshua,  sheweth  how  he  went  with  the  people  of 
Israel  unto  Abraham's  country,  and  how  he  won  it, 
and  how  the  sun  stood  still  while  he  got  the  victory, 
and  how  he  divided  the  land ;  this  book  also  I 
turned  into  English  for  prince  Ethelverd,  wherein 
a  man  may  behold  the  great  wonders  of  God  really 

fulfilled." "After  him  known  it  is  that  there  were 

in  the  land  certaine  judges  over  Israel,  who  guided 

the  people  as  it  is  written  in  the  book  of  Judges 

of  this  whoso  hath  desire  to  hear  further,  may  read 
it  in  that  English  book  which  I  translated  con- 
cerning the  same." "Of  the  book  of  Kings,  I 

have  translated  also  some  part  into  English,"  "the 
book  of  Esther,  I  briefly  after  my  manner  trans- 
lated into  English,"  and  "The  Widow  Judith  who 
overcame  Holophernes,  the  Syrian  General,  hath 
her  book  also,  among  these,  concerning  her  own 
victory  and  Englished  according  to  my  skill  for 
your  example,  that  ye  men  may  also  defend  your 
country  by  force  of  arms,  against  the  invasion  of  a 
foreign  host."  "Two  books  of  Machabeus,  to  the 
glory  of  God,  I  have  turned  also  into  English,  and 
so  read  them,  you  may  if  you  please,  for  your  in- 
struction." And  at  the  end  we  find  him  again  ad- 
monishing the  scribes  to  use  the  pen  with  faithful- 
ness. "Whosoever,"  says  he,  "shall  write  out  this 
book,  let  him  write  it  according  to  the  copy,  and 
for  God's  love  correct  it,  that  it  be  not  faulty,  less 
he  thereby  be  discredited,  and  I  shent."  * 

•  Lisle's  Divers  Ancient  Monuments  in  the  Saxon  Tongue,  4to. 
Lond.  1638,  p.  43. 


74  BIBLIOMANIA. 

This  learned  prelate  died  on  the  i6th  of  Novem- 
ber, 1006,  after  a  life  spent  thus  in  the  service  of 
Christ  and  the  cause  of  learning;  by  his  will  he 
bequeathed  to  the  Abbey  of  St.  Alban's,  besides 
some  landed  possessions,  his  little  library  of  books  ;* 
he  was  honorably  buried  at  Abingdon,  but  during 
the  reign  of  Canute,  his  bones  were  removed  to 
Canterbury. 

Passing  on  a  few  years,  we  come  to  that  period 
when  a  new  light  shone  upon  the  lethargy  of  the 
Saxons ;  the  learning  and  erudition  which  had  been 
fostering  in  the  snug  monasteries  of  Normandy, 
hitherto  silent — buried  as  it  were — but  yet  fast 
growing  to  maturity,  accompanied  the  sword  of  the 
Norman  duke,  and  added  to  the  glory  of  the  con- 
quering hero,  by  their  splendid  intellectual  endow- 
ments. All  this  emulated  and  roused  the  Saxons 
from  their  slumber ;  and,  rubbing  their  laziness 
away,  they  again  grasped  the  pen  with  the  full  nerve 
and  energy  of  their  nature ;  a  reaction  ensued, 
literature  was  respected,  learning  prospered,  and 
copious  work  flowed  in  upon  the  scribes ;  the  crack- 
ling of  parchment,  and  the  din  of  controversy 
bespoke  the  presence  of  this  revival  in  the  cloisters 
of  the  English  monasteries;  books,  the  weapons 
spiritual  of  the  monks,  libraries,  the  magazines  of 
the  church  militant  were  preserved,  amassed,  and  at 
last  deemed  indispensable.f    Such  was  the  effect  on 

*  MS.  Cottonian  Claudius,  b.  vi.  p.  103;  Dart's  Hist,  of  Cant, 
p.  112.;  Dugdale's  Monast.,  vol.  i.  p.  517. 

t  There  was  an  old  saying,  and  a  true  one,  prevalent  in  those 
days,  that  a  monastery  without  a  library  was  like  a  castle  without  an 
armory,  Clastrum  sine  armaria,  quasi  castrum  sine  armamentario. 
See  letter  of  Gaufredi  of  St.  Barbary  to  Peter  Mangot,  Martene 
Thts.  Nov.  Anecd.,  torn.  i.  col.  511. 


BIBLIOMANIA.  75 

our  national  literature  of  that  gushing  in  of  the 
Norman  conquerors,  so  deeply  imbued  with  learn- 
ing, so  polished,  and  withal  so  armed  with  classical 
and  patristic  lore  were  they. 

Foremost  in  the  rank  we  find  the  learned  Lan- 
franc,  that  patron  of  literature,  that  indefatigable 
scribe  and  anxious  book  collector,  who  was  endowed 
with  an  erudition  far  more  deep  and  comprehensive 
than  any  other  of  his  day.  He  was  born  at  Pavia, 
in  1005,  and  received  there  the  first  elements  of  his 
education  ;*  he  aftenvards  went  to  Bologna,  and  from 
thence  to  Avranches,  where  he  undertook  the  edu- 
cation of  many  celebrated  scholars  of  that  century, 
and  instructed  them  in  sacred  and  secular  learning, 
in  sacris  et  secularibus  erudivi  Uteris.^  Whilst  pro- 
ceeding on  a  journey  to  Rome  he  was  attacked  by 
some  robbers,  who  maltreated  and  left  him  almost 
dead;  in  this  condition  he  was  found  by  some 
peasants  who  conveyed  him  to  the  monastery  of 
Bee ;  the  monks  with  their  usual  hospitable  charity 
tended  and  so  assiduously  nourished  him  in  his 
sickness,  that  on  his  recovery  he  became  one  of 
their  fraternity.  A  few  years  after,  he  was  ap- 
pointed prior  and  founded  a  school  there,  which  did 
immense  service  to  literature  and  science ;  he  also 
collected  a  great  library  which  was  renowned 
and  esteemed  in  his  day,J  and  he  increased  their 
value  by  a  critical  revisal  of  their  text.  He  was 
well  aware  that  in  works  so  voluminous  as  those  of 

*  Mabillon,  Act.  S.,  torn.  ix.  p.  659. 

t  Ep.  i.  ad  Papae  Alex, 

X  Vita  Lanfr.,  c.  vi.  ^^  Effulsit  eo  majistro,  obedientia  coactu, 
philosophicarum  ac  divinarum  litterarum  bibliotheca,  etc."  Opera 
p.  8.  Edit,  folio,  1648. 


ye  BIBLIOMANIA. 

the  fathers,  the  scribes  through  so  many  generations 
could  not  be  expected  to  observe  an  unanimous 
infallibility ;  but  knowing  too  that  even  the  most 
essential  doctrines  of  the  holy  and  catholic  church 
were  founded  on  patristical  authority,  he  was  deeply 
impressed  with  the  necessity  of  keeping  their  writ- 
ings in  all  their  primitive  integrity  ;  an  end  so 
desirable,  well  repaid  the  tediousness  of  the  under- 
taking, and  he  cheerfully  spent  much  time  in  col- 
lecting and  comparing  codices,  in  studying  their 
various  readings  or  erasing  the  spurious  inter- 
polations, engendered  by  the  carelessness  or  the 
pious  frauds  of  monkish  scribes.*  He  lavished  his 
care  in  a  similar  manner  on  the  Bible  :  considering 
the  far  distant  period  from  which  that  holy  volume 
h-as  descended  to  us,  it  is  astounding  that  the  vicis- 
situdes, the  perils,  the  darkness  of  near  eighteen 
hundred  years,  have  failed  to  mar  the  divinity  of 
that  sacred  book ;  not  all  the  blunders  of  nodding 
scribes  could  do  it,  not  all  the  monkish  interpola- 
tions, or  the  cunning  of  sectarian  pens  could  do  it, 
for  in  all  times  the  faithful  church  of  Christ  watched 
over  it  with  a  jealous  care,  supplied  each  erasure 
and  expelled  each  false  addition.  Lanfranc  was 
one  of  the  most  vigilant  of  these  Scripture  guards, 
and  his  own  industry  blest  his  church  with  the  bible 
text,  purified  from  the  gross  handmarks  of  human 
meddling.  I  learn,  from  the  Benedictines  of  St. 
Maur,  that  there  is  still  preserved  in  the  Abbey  of 
St.   Martin  de  Secz,   the  first  ten   conferences   of 

*  "  Et  quia  scripturae  scriptorum  vitio  erant  ninium  corruptae, 
omnes  tarn  Veteris,  quam  Novi  Testamenti  libros;  necnon  etiam 
scriptae  sanctorum  patrum  secundum  orthodoxam  fidem  studuit  cor- 
rigere."    Vita  Lanfr.  cap.  15,  ap.  Opera,  p.  15. 


BIBLIOMANIA.  77 

Cassian  corrected  by  the  efficient  hand  of  this  great 
critical  student,  at  the  end  of  the  manuscript  these 
words  are  written,  "  Hucusque  ago  Lanfrancus  cor- 
rexu"^  The  works  of  St.  Ambrose,  on  which  he 
bestowed  similar  care,  are  preserved  in  the  library 
of  St.  Vincent  du  Mans.f 

When  he  was  promoted  to  the  See  of  Canter- 
bury, he  brought  with  him  a  copious  supply  of 
books,  and  spread  the  influence  of  his  learning  over 
the  English  monasteries ;  but  with  all  the  cares 
inseparably  connected  with  the  dignity  of  Primate 
of  England,  he  still  found  time  to  gratify  his  book- 
loving  propensities,  and  to  continue  his  critical 
labors ;  indeed  he  worked  day  and  night  in  the 
service  of  the  church,  servitio  EcclesicB,  and  in  cor- 
recting the  books  which  the  scribes  had  written.  J 
From  the  profusion  of  his  library  he  was  enabled 
to  lend  many  volumes  to  the  monks,  so  that  by 
making  transcripts,  they  might  add  to  their  own 
stores — thus  we  know  that  he  lent  to  Paulen,  Abbot 
of  St.  Albans,  a  great  number,  who  kept  his  scribes 
hard  at  work  transcribing  them,  and  built  a  scrip- 
torium for  the  transaction  of  these  pleasing  labors ; 
but  more  of  this  hereafter. 

Anselm,  too,  was  a  renowned  and  book-loving 
prelate,  and  if  his  pride  and  haughtiness  wrought 
warm  dissensions  and  ruptures  in  the  church,  he 
often  stole  away  to  forget  them  in  the  pages  of  his 
book.     At  an  early  age  he  acquired  this  fondness 

*  Hist.  Litt.  de  la  France,  vol.  vii.  p.  117. 

f  Ibid.  "  II  rendit  de  meme  service  a  trois  ecrits  de  S.  Am- 
brose I'Hexameron,  I'apologie  de  David  et  le  traite  des  Sacrements, 
tels  qu'on  les  voit  a  la  bibliotheque  de  St.  Vincent  du  Mans. 

X  Ibid. 


78  BIBLIOMANIA. 

for  reading,  and  whilst  engaged  as  a  monkish 
student,  he  applied  his  mind  to  the  perusal  of 
books  with  wonderful  perseverance,  and  when  some 
favorite  volume  absorbed  his  attention,  he  could 
scarce  leave  it  night  or  day.*  Industry  so  inde- 
fatigable ensured  a  certain  success,  and  he  became 
eminent  for  his  deep  and  comprehensive  learning ; 
his  epistles  bear  ample  testimony  to  his  extensive 
reading  and  intimate  acquaintance  with  the  authors 
of  antiquity  ;f  in  one  of  his  letters  he  praises  a 
monk  named  Maurice,  for  his  success  in  study, 
who  was  learning  Vtr£-z/ and  some  other  old  writers, 
under  Arnulph  the  grammarian. 

All  day  long  Anselm  was  occupied  in  giving 
wise  counsel  to  those  that  needed  it ;  and  a  great 
part  of  the  night  pars  maxima  noctis  he  spent  in 
correcting  his  darling  volumes,  and  freeing  them 
from  the  inaccuracies  of  the  scribes.  J  The  oil  in 
the  lamp  burnt  low,  still  that  bibliomaniac  studi- 
ously pursued  his  favorite  avocation.  So  great 
was  the  love  of  book-collecting  engrafted  into  his 
mind,  that  he  omitted  no  opportunity  of  obtaining 
them — numerous  instances  occur  in  his  epistles  of 
his  begging  the  loan  of  some  volume  for  transcrip- 
tion ;§  in  more  than  one,  I  think,  he  asks  for  por- 
tions of  the  Holy  Scriptures  which  he  was  always 
anxious  to  obtain  to  compare  their  various  readings, 
and  to  enable  him  with  greater  confidence  to  cor- 
rect his  own  copies. 

*  Malmsb.  de  Gest.  Pontif.  b.  i.  p.  216. 
f  See  Epist.  16.  Lib.  i. 

i  Edmer.  Vit.  Anselm,  apud  Anselm  Opera. — Edit.  Benedict y 
1721,  b.  i.  p.  4. 

%  Epp.  10-20,  lib.  i.  and  24  b.  ii. 


BIBLIOMANIA.  79 

In  the  early  part  of  the  twelfth  century,  the 
monks  of  Canterbury  transcribed  a  vast  number  of 
valuable  manuscripts,  in  which  they  were  greatly 
assisted  by  monk  Edwine,  who  had  arrived  at  con- 
siderable proficiency  in  the  calligraphical  art,  as  a 
volume  of  his  transcribing,  in  Trinity  college,  Cam- 
bridge, informs  us;*  it  is  a  Latin  Psalter,  with  a 
Saxon  gloss,  beautifully  illuminated  in  gold  and 
colors  ;  at  the  end  appears  the  figure  of  the  monkish 
scribe,  holding  the  pen  in  his  hand  to  indicate  his 
avocation,  and  an  inscription  extols  his  ingenuity 
in  the  art.f 

Succeeding  archbishops  greatly  enriched  the 
library  at  Canterbury.  Hubert  Walter,  who  was 
appointed  primate  in  1191,  gave  the  proceeds  of 
the  church  of  Halgast  to  furnish  books  for  the 
library ;  J  and  Robert  Kildwardly,  archbishop  in 
1272,  a  man  of  great  learning  and  wisdom,  a 
remarkable  orator  and  grammarian,  wrote  a  great 
number  of  books,  and  was  passionately  fond  of 
collecting  them.§ 

I  learn  from  Wanley,  that  there  is  a  large  folio 
manuscript  in  thelibrary  of  Trinity  Hall,  Cambridge, 
written  about  the  time  of  Henry  V.  by  a  monk  of 
St.  Augustine's  Abbey,  Canterbury,  containing  the 
history  of  Christ  Church ;  this  volume  proves  its 
author  to  have  been  something  of  a  bibliophile, 
and   that   is   why    I    mention    it,  for  he  gives  an 

*  Codic.  fol.  first  class,  a  dextr.  Sc.  Med.  5. 

t  Warton's  Hist.  Eng.  Poetry.     Dissert,  ii. 

X  Dart's  Canterb.  p.  132.     Dugdale's  Monast.  vol.  i.  p.  85. 

%  There  is,  or  was,  in  St.  Peter's  college,  Cambridge,  a  MS. 
volume  of  21  books,  which  formerly  belonged  to  this  worthy  Biblio- 
phile.— Darty  p.  137. 


BIBLIOMANIA.  80 

account  of  some  books  then  preserved,  which  were 
sent  over  by  Pope  Gregory  to  St.  Augustine ;  these 
precious  volumes  consisted  of  a  Bible  in  two 
volumes,  called  "  Biblia  Gregorian,"  beautifully 
written,  with  some  of  the  leaves  tinted  with  purple 
and  rose-color,  and  the  capital  letters  rubricated. 
This  interesting  and  venerable  MS.  so  immediately 
connected  with  the  first  ages  of  the  Christian 
church  of  Britain,  was  in  existence  in  the  time  of 
James  I.,  as  we  learn  by  a  passage  in  a  scarce  tract 
entitled  "  A  Petition  Apologetical,"  addressed  by 
the  Catholics  to  his  majesty,  where,  as  a  proof  that 
we  derive  our  knowledge  of  Scripture  originally 
from  the  church  of  Rome;  they  say,  "The  very 
original  Bible,  the  self-same  Numero  which  St. 
Gregory  sent  in  with  our  apostle,  St.  Augustine, 
being  as  yet  reserved  by  God's  special  providence, 
as  testimony  that  what  Scriptures  we  have,  we  had 
them  from  Rome.* 

He  next  mentions  two  Psalters,  one  of  which  I 
have  seen ;  it  is  among  the  manuscripts  in  the  Cot- 
ton collection,  f  and  bears  full  evidence  of  its  great 
antiquity.  This  early  gem  of  biblical  literature 
numbers  160  folios;  it  contains  the  Roman  Psalter, 
with  a  Saxon  interlinear  translation,  written  on 
stout  vellum,  in  a  clear,  bold  hand.  On  opening 
the  volume,  we  find  the  first  page  enriched  with  a 
dazzling  specimen  of  monkish  skill — it  is  a  painting 
of  our  Saviour  pointing  with  his  right  hand  to 
heaven,  and  in  his  left  holding  the  sacred  book; 
the  corners  are  occupied  with  figures  of  animals, 

*  Petition  Apol.  4to,  1604,  p.  17. 
t  Brit.  Mus.  Vesp.  A.  i. 


BIBLIOMANIA.  8i 

and  the  whole  wrought  on  a  glittering  ground 
work,  is  rendered  still  more  gorgeous  by  the  con- 
trast which  the  purple  robes  of  Jesus  display;  on 
the  reverse  of  this  fine  illumination  there  is  a  beau- 
tiful tesselated  ornament,  interwoven  with  animals, 
flowers,  and  grotesque  figures,  around  which  are 
miniatures  of  our  Saviour,  David,  and  some  of  the 
apostles.  I  n  a  line  at  the  bottom  the  word  C atvsvir 
is  inscribed.  Very  much  inferior  to  this  in  point  of 
art  is  the  illumination,  at  folio  31,  representing 
David  playing  his  harp,  surrounded  by  a  musical 
coterie ;  it  is  probably  the  workmanship  of  a  more 
modern,  but  less  skilful  scribe  of  the  Saxon  school. 
The  smaller  ornaments  and  initial  letters  through- 
out the  manuscript  display  great  intricacy  of 
design. 

The  writer  next  describes  two  copies  of  the 
Gospels,  both  now  in  the  Bodleian  Collection  at 
Oxford.  A  Passionarium  Sanctorum,  a  book  for 
the  altar,  on  one  side  of  which  was  the  image  of 
our  Saviour  wrought  in  gold,  and  lastly,  an  exposi- 
tion of  the  Epistles  and  Gospels ;  the  monkish 
bookworm  tells  us  that  these  membraneous  treas- 
ures were  the  most  ancient  books  in  all  the 
churches  of  England.* 

A  good  and  liberal  monk,  named  Henry  De 
Estria,  who  was  elected  prior  in  the  year  1285,  de- 
voted both  his  time  and  wealth  to  the  interests  of 
his  monastery,  and  is  said  to  have  expended  ;i^900 
in  repairing  the  choir  and  chapter-house,  f      He 

*  Wanley  Librorum  Vett  Septentrionalium  fol.    Oxon,    1705, 

p.  172. 

t  Dugdale's  Monast.  Angl.  vol.  i.  p.  112. 


82  BIBLIOMANIA. 

wrote  a  book  beginning,  '^^  Memoriale  Henerici 
Prioris  Monasteri  Xpi  Cantuarics^"^  now  preserved 
in  the  Cotton  collection;  it  contains  the  most 
extensive  monastic  catalogue  I  had  ever  seen,  and 
sufficiently  proves  how  Bibliomania  flourished  in 
that  noble  monastery.  It  occupies  no  less  than 
thirty-eight  treble-columned  folio  pages,  and  con- 
tains the  titles  of  more  than  three  thousand  works. 
To  attempt  to  convey  to  the  reader  an  idea  of  this 
curious  and  sumptuous  library,  without  transcribing 
a  large  proportion  of  its  catalogue,  I  am  afraid 
will  be  a  futile  labor ;  but  as  that  would  occupy 
too  much  space,  and  to  many  of  my  readers  be, 
after  all,  dry  and  uninteresting,  I  shall  merely  give 
the  names  of  some  of  the  most  conspicuous.  Years 
indeed  it  must  have  required  to  have  amassed  a 
collection  so  brilliant  and  superb  in  those  days  of 
book  scarcity.  Surprise  and  wonder  almost  sur- 
pass the  admiration  we  feel  at  beholding  this  proud 
testimonial  of  monkish  industry  and  early  biblio- 
mania. Many  a  choice  scribe,  and  many  an  Amator 
Librorum  must  have  devoted  his  pen  and  purse  to 
effect  so  noble  an  acquisition.  Like  most  of  the 
monastic  libraries,  it  possessed  a  great  proportion 
of  biblical  literature — copies  of  the  Bible  whole 
and  in  parts,  commentaries  on  the  same,  and  nu- 
merous glossaries  and  concordances  show  how 
much  care  the  monks  bestowed  on  the  sacred 
writings,  and  how  deeply  they  were  studied  in 
those  old  days.  In  patristic  learning  the  library 
was  unusually  rich,  embracing  the  most  eminent 
and  valuable  writings  of  the  Fathers,  as  may  be 

*  MS.  Cot.  Galba.  E.  iv. 


BIBLIOMANIA.  ^3 

seen  by  the  following  names,  of  whose  works  the 
catalogue  enumerates  many  volumes  : 

Augustine.  Bernard.  Gregory. 

Ambroise.  Bede.  Hillarius. 

Anselm.  Beranger.  Isidore. 

Alcuin.  Chrysostom.  Jerome. 

Aldelm.  Eusebius.  Lanfranc. 

Benedict.  Fulgentius.  Origen. 

Much  as  we  may  respect  them  for  all  this,  our 
gratitude  will  materially  increase  when  we  learn 
how  serviceable  the  monks  of  Canterbury  were  in 
preserving  the  old  dead  authors  of  Greece  and 
Rome.  We  do  not,  from  the  very  nature  of  their 
lives  being  so  devoted  to  religion  and  piety,  expect 
this  ;  and  knowing,  too,  what  "  heathen  dogs  "  the 
monks  thought  these  authors  of  idolatry,  com- 
bined with  our  notion,  that  they,  far  from  being 
the  conservers,  were  the  destroyers,  of  classic 
MSS.,  for  the  sake,  as  some  tell  us,  of  the  parch- 
ment on  which  they  were  inscribed,  we  are  some- 
what staggered  in  our  opinion  to  find  in  their 
library  the  following  brilliant  array  of  the  wise 
men  of  the  ancient  world  : 


Aristotle, 

Josephus, 

Prosper, 

Boethius, 

Lucan, 

Prudentius, 

Cicero, 

Martial, 

Suetonius, 

Cassiodorus, 

Marcianus, 

Sediilus, 

Donatus, 

Macrobius, 

Seneca, 

Euclid, 

Orosius, 

Terence, 

Galen, 

Plato, 

Virgil, 

Justin, 

Priscian, 

Etc.,  etc. 

Nor  were  they  mere  fragments  of  these  authors, 
but,   in   many  cases,   considerable  collections ;  of 


84  BIBLIOMANIA. 

Aristotle,  for  instance,  they  possessed  numerous 
works,  with  many  commentaries  upon  him.  Of 
Seneca  a  still  more  extensive  and  valuable  one ; 
and  in  the  works  of  the  eloquent  Tully,  they  were 
also  equally  rich.  Of  his  Paradoxa^  de  Senectute, 
de  Amiticia,  etc.,  and  his  Offices^  they  had  more 
copies  than  one,  a  proof  of  the  respect  and  esteem 
with  which  he  was  regarded.  In  miscellaneous 
literature,  and  in  the  productions  of  the  middle 
age  writers,  the  catalogue  teems  with  an  abundant 
supply,  and  includes  : 

Rabanus  Maurus,  Robert  Grosetete, 

Thomas  Aquinas,  Gerlandus, 

Peter  Lombard,  Gregory  Nazianzen, 

Athelard,  History  of  England, 
William  of  Malmsbury,        Gesti  Alexandri  Magni, 

John  of  Salisbury,  Hystoria  Longobardos, 

Girald  Barry,  Hystoriae  Scholasticse, 

Thomas  Baldwin,  Chronicles  LaHne  et  Anglice, 

Brutus,  Chronographia  Necephori. 

But  I  trust  the  reader  will  not  rest  satisfied  with 
these  few  samples  of  the  goodly  store,  but  inspect 
the  catalogue  for  himself.  It  would  occupy,  as  I 
said  before,  too  much  space  to  enumerate  even  a 
small  proportion  of  its  many  treasures,  which  treat 
of  all  branches  of  literature  and  science,  natural 
history,  medicine,  ethics,  philosophy,  rhetoric,  gram- 
mar, poetry,  and  music ;  each  shared  the  studious 
attention  of  the  monks,  and  a  curious  ''Liber  de 
Astronomia  "  taught  them  the  rudiments  of  that 
sublime  science,  but  which  they  were  too  apt  to 
confound  with  its  offspring,  astrology,  as  we  may 
infer,  was  the  case  with  the  monks  of  Canterbury, 


BIBLIOMANIA.  85 

for  their  library  contained  a  ''Liber  de  Astrolcebus,'' 
and  the  "  Prophesies  of  Merlin." 

Many  hints  connected  with  the  literary  portion 
of  a  monastic  life  may  sometimes  be  found  in  these 
catalogues.  It  was  evidently  usual  at  Christ  Church 
Monastery  to  keep  apart  a  number  of  books  for 
the  private  study  of  the  monks  in  the  cloister, 
which  I  imagine  they  were  at  liberty  to  use  at  any 
time.* 

A  portion  of  the  catalogue  of  monk  Henry  is 
headed  ''Lib.  de  Armariole  Claustre"\  under  which  it 
is  pleasing  to  observe  a  Bible,  in  two  volumes,  speci- 
fied as  for  the  use  of  the  infirmary,  with  devotional 
books,  lives  of  the  fathers,  a  history  of  England, 
the  works  of  Bede,  Isidore,  Boethius,  Rabanus 
Maurus,  Cassiodorus,  and  many  others  of  equal 
celebrity.  In  another  portion  of  the  manuscript, 
we  find  a  list  of  their  church  books,  written  at  the 
same  time ;%  it  affords  a  brillant  proof  of  the  plenti- 
tude  of  the  gospels  among  them ;  for  no  less  than 
twenty-five  copies  are  described.  We  may  judge 
to  what  height  the  art  of  bookbinding  had  arrived 
by  the  account  here  given  of  these  precious  volumes. 
Some  were  in  a  splendid  coopertoria  of  gold  and 
silver,  and  others  exquisitely  ornamented  with 
figures  of  our  Saviour  and  the  four  Evangelists.§ 
But  this  extravagant  costliness  rendered  them  at- 
tractive objects  to  pilfering  hands,  and  somewhat 
accounts  for  the  lament  of  the  industrious  Somner, 

*  See  what  has  been  said  on  this  subject  in  the  previous  chapter, 
f  MS.  Galla,  E.  iv.  fol.  133. 
X  MS.  fol.  122. 

$  Textus  Magnus  auro  coopertus  et  gemmis  ornatus,  cum  tnajis- 
tate  in  media,  et  4  Evangelistis  in  4  Angulis.     Ibid. 


86  BIBLIOMANIA. 

who  says  that  the  library  was  "  shamefully  robbed 
and  spoiled  of  them  all."* 

Our  remarks  on  the  monastic  library  at  Canter- 
bury are  drawing  to  a  close.  Henry  Chicleley, 
archbishop  in  141 3,  an  excellent  man,  and  a  great 
promoter  of  learning,  rebuilt  the  library  of  the 
church,  and  furnished  it  with  many  a  choice  tome.f 
His  esteem  for  literature  was  so  great,  that  he  built 
two  colleges  at  Oxford.J  William  Sellinge,  who 
was  a  man  of  erudition,  and  deeply  imbued  with 
the  book-loving  mania,  was  elected  prior  in  1472. 
He  is  said  to  have  studied  at  Bonania,  in  Italy; 
and,  during  his  travels,  he  gathered  together  "all 
the  ancient  authors,  both  Greek  and  Latine,  he 
could  get,"  and  returned  laden  with  them  to  his  own 
country.  Many  of  them  were  of  great  rarity,  and 
it  is  said  that  a  Tully  de  Republica  was  among 
them.  Unfortunately,  they  were  all  burnt  by  a 
fire  in  the  monastery. § 

I  have  said  enough,  I  think,  to  show  that  books 
were  eagerly  sought  after,  and  deeply  appreciated, 
in  Canterbury  cloisters  during  the  middle  ages,  and 
when  the  reader  considers  that  these  facts  have 
been  preserved  from  sheer  accident,  and,  therefore, 
only  enable  us  to  obtain  a  partial  glimpse  of  the 

*  Somner  Antiq.  Cant.  410.  1640,  p.  174,  he  is  speaking  of 
books  in  general. 

t  Duck  Vita  Chich.  p.  104. 

i  Dugdale,  vol.  i.  p.  86.  Dart,  p.  158,  and  Somner  Ant. 
Cant.  174. 

%  Somner,  294  and  295 ;  see  also  Leland  Scriptor.  He  was  well 
versed  in  the  Greek  language,  and  his  monument  bears  the  following 
line: 

"  Doctor  theologas  Selling  Grseca  atque  Latina, 
Linqua  perdoctas." — See  Warton's  Hist.  Poet.,  ii.  p.  425. 


BIBLIOMANIA,  87 

actual  state  of  their  library,  he  will  be  ready  to 
admit  that  bibliomania  existed  then,  and  will  feel 
thankful,  too,  that  it  did,  for  to  its  influence,  surely, 
we  are  indebted  for  the  preservation  of  much  that 
is  valuable  and  instructive  in  history  and  general 
literature.* 

We  can  scarcely  leave  Kent  without  a  word  or 
two  respecting  the  church  of  the  Rochester  monks. 
It  was  founded  by  King  Ethelbert,  who  conferred 
upon  it  the  dignities  of  an  episcopal  see,  in  the 
year  600 ;  and,  dedicating  it  to  St.  Andrew,  com- 
pleted the  good  work  by  many  donations  and 
emoluments.  The  revenues  of  the  see  were  always 
limited,  and  it  is  said  that  its  poverty  caused  it  to 
be  treated  with  kind  forbearance  by  the  ecclesias- 
tical commissioners  at  the  period  of  the  Reforma- 
tion. 

I  have  not  been  able  to  meet  with  any  cata- 
logue of  its  monastic  library,  and  the  only  hints  I 
can  obtain  relative  to  their  books  are  such  as  may 
be  gathered  from  the  recorded  donations  of  its 
learned  prelates  and  monks.  In  the  year  1077, 
Gundulph,  a  Norman  bishop,  who  is  justly  cele- 
brated for  his  architectural  talents,  rebuilt  the 
cathedral,  and  considerable  remains  of  this  struc- 
ture are  still  to  be  seen  in  the  nave  and  west  front, 
and  display  that  profuse  decoration  united  with 
ponderous  stability,  for  which  the  Norman  build- 
ings are  so  remarkable.     This  munificent  prelate 

*  There  is  a  catalogue  written  in  the  sixteenth  century,  preserved 
among  the  Cotton  MS.,  containing  the  titles  of  seventy  books  belong- 
ing to  Catherbury  Library.  It  is  printed  in  Leland  Collect,  vol.  iv. 
p.  120,  and  in  Dart's  Hist.  Cant.  Cath.;  but  they  differ  slightly  from 
the  Cott.  MS.     Julius,  c.  vi.  4,  fol  99. 


88  BIBLIOMANIA. 

also  enriched  the  church  with  numerous  and  costly 
ornaments  ;  the  encouragement  he  gave  to  learning 
calls  for  some  notice  here.  Trained  in  one  of  the 
most  flourishing  of  the  Norman  schools,  we  are  not 
surprised  that  in  his  early  youth  he  was  so  studious 
and  inquisitive  after  knowledge  as  to  merit  the 
especial  commendation  of  his  biographer.*  Wil- 
liam of  Malmsbury,  too,  highly  extols  him  "for  his 
abundant  piety,"  and  tells  us  that  he  was  not  in- 
experienced in  literary  avocations  ;  he  was  polished 
and  courageous  in  the  management  of  judicial 
affairs,  and  a  close,  devoted  student  of  the  divine 
writings  ;f  as  a  scribe  he  was  industrious  and  criti- 
cal, and  the  great  purpose  to  which  he  applied  his 
patience  and  erudition  was  a  careful  revisal  of  the 
Holy  Scriptures.  He  purged  the  sacred  volume  of 
the  inadvertencies  of  the  scribes,  and  restored  the 
purity  of  the  text ;  for  transcribing  after  transcrib- 
ing had  caused  some  errors  and  diversity  of  read- 
ings to  occur,  between  the  English  and  foreign 
codices,  in  spite  of  all  the  pious  care  of  the  monastic 
copyists ;  this  was  perplexing,  an  uniformity  was 
essential  and  he  undertook  the  task  ;;j;  labors  so 
valuable  deserve  the  highest  praise,  and  we  bestow 
it  more  liberally  upon  him  for  this  good  work  than 
we  should  have  done  had  he  been  the  compiler  of 
crude  homilies  or  the  marvellous  legends  of  saints. 
The  high  veneration  in  which  Gundulph  held  the 
patristic  writings  induced  him  to  bestow  his  atten- 
tion in  a  similar  manner  upon  them,  he  compared 

*  Monachus  Roffensis  de  Vita  Gundulphi,  274. 

t  Will.  Malms,  de  Gest.  Pont.  Ang.  ap  Rerum.  Ang.  Script,  133. 

t  Histoire  Litteraire  de  Fr.,  torn.  vii.  p.  118. 


BIBLIOMANIA.  89 

copies,  studied  their  various  readings  and  set  to 
work  to  correct  them.  The  books  necessary  for 
these  critical  researches  he  obtained  from  the 
libraries  of  his  former  master,  Bishop  Lanfranc, 
St.  Anselm,  his  schoolfellow,  and  many  others  who 
were  studying  at  Bee  ,  but  besides  this,  he  corrected 
many  other  authors,  and  by  comparing  them  with 
ancient  manuscripts,  restored  them  to  their  primitive 
beauty.  Fabricius*  notices  a  fine  volume,  which 
bore  ample  testimony  to  his  critical  erudition  and 
dexterity  as  a  scribe.  It  is  described  as  a  large 
Bible  on  parchment,  written  in  most  beautiful 
characters,  it  was  proved  to  be  his  work  by  this 
inscription  on  its  title  page,  "  Prima  pars  Biblice 
per  bona  memoricB  Gundulphum  Rossensem  Epis- 
copum."  This  interesting  manuscript,  formerly  in 
the  library  of  the  monks  of  Rochester,  was  re- 
garded as  one  of  their  most  precious  volumes.  An 
idea  of  the  great  value  of  a  Bible  in  those  times 
may  be  derived  from  the  curious  fact  that  the  bishop 
made  a  decree  directing  "excommunication  to  be 
pronounced  against  whosoever  should  take  away  or 
conceal  this  volume,  or  who  should  even  dare  to 
conceal  the  inscription  on  the  front,  which  indicated 
the  volume  to  be  the  property  of  the  church  of 
Rochester."  But  we  must  bear  in  mind  that  this  was 
no  ordinary  copy,  it  was  transcribed  by  Gundulph's 
own  pen,  and  rendered  pure  in  its  text  by  his 
critical  labors.  But  the  time  came  when  anathemas 
availed  nought,  and  excommunication  was  divested 
of  all  terror.  "  Henry  the  Eighth,"  the  "  Defender 
of  the  Faith,"  frowned  destruction  upon  the  monks, 

*  Biblioth.  Latine,  b.  vii.  p.  519. 


90  BIBLIOMANIA. 

and  in  the  tumult  that  ensued,  this  treasure  was 
carried  away,  anathema  and  all.  Somehow  or 
other  it  got  to  Amsterdam,  perhaps  sent  over  in 
one  of  those  "shippes  full,"  to  the  bookbinders, 
and  having  passed  through  many  hands,  at  last 
found  its  way  into  the  possession  of  Herman  Van 
de  Wal,  Burgomaster  of  Amsterdam  ;  since  then  it 
was  sold  by  public  auction,  but  has  now  I  be- 
lieve been  lost  sight  of.*  Among  the  numerous 
treasures  which  Gundulph  gave  to  his  church,  he 
included  a  copy  of  the  Gospels,  two  missals  and  a 
book  of  Epistles.f  Similar  books  were  given  by 
succeeding  prelates ;  Radolphus,  a  Norman  bishop 
in  1 1 08,  gave  the  monks  several  copies  of  the  gos- 
pels beautifully  adorned.  J  Earnulphus,  in  the  year 
1 1 1 5,  was  likewise  a  benefactor  in  this  way ;  he 
bestowed  upon  them,  besides  many  gold  and  silver 
utensils  for  the  church,  a  copy  of  the  gospels, 
lessons  for  the  principal  days,  a  benedictional,  or 
book  of  blessings,  a  missal,  handsomely  bound,  and 
a  capitular.§  Ascelin,  formerly  prior  of  Dover, 
and  made  bishop  of  Rochester,  in  the  year  1142, 
gave  them  a  Psalter  and  the  Epistles  of  St.  Paul, 
with  a  gloss  II  He  was  a  learned  man,  and  ex- 
cessively fond  of  books ;  a  passion  which  he  had 
acquired  no  doubt  in  his  monastery  of  Dover  which 
possessed    a    library  of    no    mean    extent.^     He 

*  Hist.  Litt.  de  Fr.,  torn.  ix.  p.  373. 

t  Thorpe  Regist.  Roflfens,  fol.  1769,  p.  118. 

X  Wharton  Angl.  Sacr.,  torn,  i,  p.  342. 

$  Thorpe  Regist.  Rof.,  p.  120.    Dugdale's  Monast.,  vol.  i,  p.  157. 

II  Thorpe  Reg.  Rof.,  p.  121. 

H  A  catalogue  of  this  library  is  preserved  among  the  Bodleian 
MSS.  No.  920,  containing  many  fine  old  volumes.  I  am  not  aware 
that  it  has  been  ever  printed. 


BIBLIOMANIA,  91 

wrote  a  commentary  on  Isaiah,  and  gave  it  to  the 
monastery;  Walter,  archdeacon  of  Canterbury, 
who  succeeded  Ascelin,  gave  a  copy  of  the  gospels 
bound  in  gold,  to  the  church ;  *  and  Waleran, 
elected  bishop  in  the  year  1182,  presented  them 
with  a  glossed  Psalter,  the  Epistles  of  Paul,  and 
the  Sermons  of  Peter. f 

Glanvill,  bishop  in  the  year  11 84,  endeavored 
to  deprive  the  monks  of  the  land  which  Gundulph 
had  bestowed  upon  them  ;  this  gave  to  rise  to  many 
quarrels  %  which  the  monks  never  forgave ;  it  is 
said  that  he  died  without  regret,  and  was  buried 
without  ceremony ;  yet  the  curious  may  still  in- 
spect his  tomb  on  the  north  side  of  the  altar,  with 
his  effigies  and  mitre  lying  at  length  upon  it.§ 
Glanvill  probably  repented  of  his  conduct,  and  he 
strove  to  banish  all  animosity  by  many  donations ; 
and  among  other  treasures,  he  gave  the  monks  the 
five  books  of  Moses  and  other  volumes.  [ 

Osbern  of  Shebey,  who  was  prior  in  the  year 
1 1 89,  was  a  great  scribe  and  wrote  many  volumes 
for  the  library ;  he  finished  the  Commentary  of 
Ascelin,  transcribed  a  history  of  Peter,  a  Breviary 
for  the  chapel,  a  book  called  De  Claustra  anima, 
and  wrote  the  great  Psalter  which  is  chained  to 
the  choir  and  window  of  St.  Peter's  altar."  ^ 
Ralph  de    Ross,  and    Heymer  de   Tunebregge,** 

•  "Textum  Evangeliorum  aureum."     Reg.  Rof.,  p.  I2i. 
f  Ibid.,  p.  121. 

i  Dugdale's  Monasticon,  vol.  i,  p.  156. 
\  Wharton's  Ang.  Sac,  torn,  i,  p.  346. 
II  Thorpe  Reg.  Rof.,  p.  121, 

IT  Thorpe  Reg.  Rof.,  121.     Dugdale's  Monast.,  vol.  i.  p.  158. 
**  Reg.  Rof.,  pp.  122,  123. 


92  BIBLIOMANIA. 

also  bestowed  gifts  of  a  similar  nature  upon  the 
monks ;  but  the  book  anecdotes  connected  with 
this  monastic  fraternity  are  remarkably  few,  barren 
of  interest,  and  present  no  very  exalted  idea  of 
their  learning.* 

*  In  a  long  list  of  gifts  by  Robert  de  Hecham,  I  find  **  librum 
Ysidore  ethimologiarum  possuit  in  armarium  claustri  et  alia  plura 
fecit." — Thorpe  Reg.  Rof.,  p.  123. 


CHAPTER  V. 

Lindesfarne. — St.  Cuthberfs  Gospels. — Destruction 
of  the  Monastery. — AlcuirHs  Letter  on  the 
occasion.  — Removal  to  Durham.  —  Carelepho. — 
Catalogue  of  Durham.  Library.  —  Hugh  de 
Pusar.  —  Anthony  Bek.  —  Richard  de  Bury 
and  his  Philobiblon,  etc. 


19^ 

HE  Benedictine  monastery  of  Lin- 
desfarne, or  the  Holy  Island,  as 
it  was  called,  was  founded  through 
the  instrumentality  of  Oswald,  the 
son  of  Ethelfrith,  king  of  North- 
umberland, who  was  anxious  for 
the  promulgation  of  the  Christian  faith  within 
his  dominions.  Aidan,  the  first  bishop  of  whom 
we  have  any  distinct  account,  was  appointed  about 
the  year  635.  Bede  tells  us  that  he  used  fre- 
quently to  retire  to  the  Isle  of  Fame,  that  he 
might  pray  in  private  and  be  undisturbed.*  This 
small  island,  distant  about  nine  miles  from  the 
church   of    Lindesfarne,    obtained   great   celebrity 

*  Bede's  Eccles.  Hist.,  B.  iii.  c.  xvi. 


94  BIBLIOMANIA, 

from  St.  Cuthbert,  who  sought  that  quiet  spot  and 
led  there  a  lonely  existence  in  great  continence 
of  mind  and  body.*  In  685  he  was  appointed  to  the 
see  of  Lindesfarne,  where,  by  his  pious  example 
and  regular  life,  he  instructed  many  in  their  reli- 
gious duties.  The  name  of  this  illustrious  saint  is 
intimately  connected  with  a  most  magnificent  speci- 
men of  calligraphical  art  of  the  eighth  century, 
preserved  in  the  British  Museum,f  and  well  known 
by  the  name  of  the  Durham  Book,  or  Saint 
Cuthbert's  Gospels ;  it  was  written  some  years  after 
the  death  of  that  Saint,  in  honor  of  his  memory, 
by  Egfrith,  a  monk  of  Lindesfarne,  who  was  made 
bishop  of  that  see  in  the  year  698.  At  Egfrith's 
death  in  721,  his  successor,  ^thilwald,  most  beau- 
tifully bound  it  in  gold  and  precious  stones,  and 
Bilfrid,  a  hermit,  richly  illuminated  it  by  prefixing 
to  each  gospel  a  beautiful  painting  representing 
one  of  the  Evangelists,  and  a  tesselated  cross, 
executed  in  a  most  elaborate  manner.  He  also 
displayed  great  skill  by  illuminating  the  large  cap- 
ital letters  at  the  commencement  of  each  gospel.J 
Doubtless,  the  hermit  Bilfrid  was  an  eminent 
artist  in  his  day.  Aldred,  the  Glossator,  a  priest 
of  Durham,  about  the  year  950,  still  more  enriched 
this  precious  volume  by  interlining  it  with  a  Saxon 
Gloss,  or  version  of  the  Latin  text  of  St.  Jerome, 
of  which  the  original  manuscript  is  a  copy.  §     It  is 

*  Bede,  B.  iv.  c.  xxvii. 

t  Marked  Nero,  D.  iv.  in  the  Cottonian  collection. 

X  The  illuminations  are  engraved  in  Strutt's  Horda. 

\  There  is  prologue  to  the  Canons  and  Prefaces  of  St.  Jerome 
and  Eusebius,  and  also  a  beautiful  calendar  written  in  compartments, 
elaborately  finished  in  an  architectural  style. 


BIBLIOMANIA.  95 

therefore,  one  of  the  most  venerable  of  those  early 
attempts  to  render  the  holy  scriptures  into  the 
vernacular  tongue,  and  is  on  that  account  an  inter- 
esting relic  to  the  Christian  reader,  and,  no  doubt, 
formed  the  choicest  volume  in  the  library  of 
Lindesfarne.* 

But  imperfectly,  indeed,  have  I  described  the 
splendid  manuscript  which  is  now  lying,  in  all  its 
charms,  before  me.  And  as  I  mark  its  fine  old 
illuminations,  so  bright  in  color,  and  so  chaste  in 
execution,  the  accuracy  of  its  transcription,  and 
the  uniform  beauty  of  its  calligraphy,  my  im- 
agination carries  me  back  to  the  quiet  cloister  of 
the  old  Saxon  scribe  who  wrote  it,  and  I  can 
see  in  Egfrith,  a  bibliomaniac,  of  no  mean  pre- 
tensions, and  in  Bilfrid,  a  monkish  illuminator, 
well  initiated  in  the  mysteries  of  his  art.  The 
manuscript  contains  258  double  columned  folio 
pages,  and  the  paintings  of  the  Evangelists  each 
occupy  an  entire  page.  We  learn  the  history 
of  its  production  from  a  very  long  note  at  the 
end  of  the  manuscript,  written  by  the  hand  of  the 
glossator,  f 

But  sad  misfortunes  were  in  store  for  the  holy 
monks,  for  about  793,  or  a  little  earlier,  when 
Highbald  was  abbot,  the  Danes  burnt  down  the 
monastery  and  murdered  the  ecclesiastics ;  *'  most 

*  He  also  transcribed  the  Durham  Ritual,  recently  printed  by 
the  Surtee  Society;  when  Alfred  wrote  this  volume  he  was  with  bishop 
Alfsige,  p.  185,  8vo.  Lond.  1840. 

t  For  an  account  of  this  rare  gem  of  Saxon  art,  see  Selden 
PrcBf.  ad.  Hist.  Angl.  p.  25.  Marshall  Observat.  in  Vers.  Sax. 
Evang.,  491.  Dibdin^s  Decameron,  p.  lii.  Smithes  Bibl.  Cotton. 
Hist.  etSynop.,  p.  33. 


96  BIBLIOMANIA. 

dreadful  lightnings  and  other  prodigies, "  says 
Simeon  of  Durham,  "  are  said  to  have  portended 
the  impending  ruin  of  this  place  ;  on  the  7th  of 
June  they  came  to  the  church  of  Lindesfarne, 
miserably  plundered  all  places,  overthrew  the 
altars,  and  carried  away  all  the  treasures  of  the 
church,  some  of  the  monks  they  slew,  some  they  car- 
ried away  captives,  some  they  drowned  in  the  sea, 
and  others  much  afflicted  and  abused  they  turned 
away  naked. "  *  Fortunately  some  of  the  poor 
monks  escaped,  and  after  a  short  time  returned 
to  their  old  spot,  and  with  religious  zeal  set  about 
repairing  the  damage  which  the  sacred  edifice  had 
sustained;  after  its  restoration  they  continued  com- 
paratively quiet  till  the  time  of  Eardulfus,  when 
the  Danes  in  the  year  875,  again  invaded  England 
and  burned  down  the  monastery  of  Lindesfarne. 
The  monks  obtained  some  knowledge  of  their 
coming  and  managed  to  effect  their  escape,  taking 
with  them  the  body  of  St.  Cuthbert,  which  they 
highly  venerated,  with  many  other  honored  relics; 
they  then  set  out  with  the  bishop  Eardulfus  and 
the  abbot  Eadrid  at  their  head  on  a  sort  of  pil- 
grimage to  discover  some  suitable  resting  place 
for  the  remains  of  their  saint ;  but  finding  no  safe 
locality,  and  becoming  fatigued  by  the  irksomeness 
of  the  journey,  they  as  a  last  resource  resolved 
to  pass  over  to  Ireland.  For  this  purpose  they 
proceeded  to  the  sea,  but  no  sooner  were  they  on 
board  the  ship  than  a  terrific  storm  arose,  and  had 
it  not  been  for  the  fond  care  of  their  patron  saint, 
a  watery  grave  would  have  been  forever  their 
*  Simeon  of  Durham  translated  by  Stevens,  p.  87. 


BIBLIOMANIA.  97 

resting  place;  but,  as  it  was,  their  lives  were  spared, 
and  the  holy  bones  preserved  to  bless  mankind, 
and  work  wondrous  miracles  in  the  old  church 
of  the  Saxon  monks.  Nevertheless,  considerable 
damage  was  sustained,  and  the  fury  of  the  angry 
waves  forced  them  back  again  to  the  shore.  The 
monks  deeming  this  an  indication  of  God's  will 
that  they  should  remain,  decided  upon  doing  so, 
and  leaving  the  ship,  they  agreed  to  proceed  on 
their  way  rejoicing,  and  place  still  greater  trust 
in  the  mercy  of  God  and  the  miraculous  influence 
of  St.  Cuthbert's  holy  bones ;  but  some  whose 
reliance  on  Divine  providence  appears  not  so  con- 
spicuous, became  dissatisfied,  and  separated  from 
the  rest  till  at  last  only  seven  monks  were  left 
besides  their  bishop  and  abbot.  Their  relics  were 
too  numerous  and  too  cumbersome  to  be  conveyed 
by  so  small  a  number,  and  they  knew  not  how  to 
proceed  ;  but  one  of  the  seven  whose  name  was 
Hanred  had  a  vision,  wherein  he  was  told  that 
they  should  repair  to  the  sea,  where  they  would 
find  a  book  of  Gospels  adorned  with  gold  and 
precious  stones,  which  had  been  lost  out  of  the 
ship  when  they  were  in  the  storm ;  and  that  after 
that  he  should  see  a  bridle  hanging  on  a  tree, 
which  he  should  take  down  and  put  upon  a  horse 
that  would  come  to  him,  which  horse  he  should 
put  to  a  cart  he  would  also  find,  to  carry  the  holy 
body,  which  would  be  an  ease  to  them.  All  these 
things  happening  accordingly,  they  travelled  with 
more  comfort,  following  the  horse,  which  way 
soever  he  should  lead.  The  book  above  mentioned 
was  no  ways  damaged  by  the  water,  and  is  still 


98  BIBLIOMANIA. 

preserved  in  the  library  at  Durham,*  where  it 
remained  till  the  Reformation,  when  it  was  stript 
of  its  jewelled  covering,  and  after  passing  through 
many  hands,  ultimately  came  into  the  possession 
of  Sir  Robert  Cotton,  in  whose  collection,  as  we 
have  said  before,  it  is  now  preserved  in  the  British 
Museum. 

I  cannot  refrain,  even  at  the  risk  of  incurring 
some  blame  for  my  digression,  presenting  the 
reader  with  a  part  of  a  letter  full  of  fraternal  love, 
which  Alcuin  addressed  to  the  monks  of  Lindes- 
farne  on  this  sad  occasion. 

"  Your  dearest  fraternity,  "  says  he,  "  was  wont 
to  afford  me  much  joy.  But  now  how  different ! 
though  absent,  I  deeply  lament  the  more  your 
tribulations  and  calamities ;  the  manner  in  which 
the  Pagans  contaminate  the  sanctuaries  of  God, 
and  shed  the  blood  of  saints  around  the  altar, 
devastating  the  joy  of  our  house,  and  trampling  on 
the  bodies  of  holy  men  in  the  temple  of  God,  as 
though  they  were  treading  on  a  dunghill  in  the 
street.  But  of  what  effect  is  our  wailing  unless  we 
come  before  the  altars  of  Christ  and  cry,  '  Spare 
me,  O  Lord !  spare  thy  people,  and  take  not  thine 
inheritance  from  them ; '  nor  let  the  Pagans  say, 
'  Where  is  the  God  of  the  Christians  ? '  Besides 
who  is  to  pacify  the  churches  of  Britain,  if 
St.  Cuthbert  cannot  defend  them  with  so  great  a 
number  of  saints  ?  Nevertheless  do  not  trouble 
the  mind  about  these  things,  for  God  chasteneth 
all  the  sons  whom  he  receiveth,  and  therefore 
perhaps  afflicts  you  the  more,  because  he  the  more 

•  Simeon  of  Durham,  by  Stevens. 


BIBLIOMANIA.  99 

loveth  you.  Jerusalem,  the  delightful  city  of  God, 
was  lost  by  the  Chaldean  scourge ;  and  Rome,  the 
city  of  the  holy  Apostles  and  innumerable  martyrs, 
was  surrounded  by  the  Pagans  and  devastated. 
Well  nigh  the  whole  of  Europe  is  evacuated  by 
the  scourging  sword  of  the  Goths  or  the  Huns. 
But  in  the  same  manner  in  which  God  preserved 
the  stars  to  illuminate  the  heavens,  so  will  He 
preserve  the  churches  to  ornament,  and  in  their 
office  to  strengthen  and  increase  the  Christian 
religion."* 

Thus  it  came  to  pass  that  Eardulphus  was  the 
last  bishop  of  Lindesfarne  and  the  first  of  Cuneca- 
cestre,  or  Chester-upon-the-Street,  to  which  place 
his  see  was  removed  previous  to  its  final  settlement 
at  Durham. 

After  a  succession  of  many  bishops,  some  re- 
corded as  learned  and  bookish  by  monkish  an- 
nalists, and  nearly  all  benefactors  in  some  way  to 
their  church,  we  arrive  at  the  period  when  Aldwine 
was  consecrated  bishop  of  that  see  in  the  year 
990.  The  commotions  of  his  time  made  his  presi- 
dency a  troubled  and  harassing  one.  Sweyn,  king 
of  Denmark,  and  Olauis,  king  of  Norway,  invaded 
England,  and  spreading  themselves  in  bodies  over 
the  kingdom,  committed  many  and  cruel  depre- 
dations ;  a  strong  body  of  these  infested  the 
northern  coast,  and  approached  the  vicinity  of 
Chester-on-the-Street.  This  so  alarmed  Aldwine, 
that  he  resolved  to  quit  his  church — for  the  great 
riches  and  numerous  relics  of  that  holy  place  were 
attractive  objects  to  the  plundering  propensities  of 
•  Ep.  viii. 


loo  BIBLIOMANIA. 

the  invaders.  Carrying,  therefore,  the  bones  of 
St.  Cuthbert  with  them — for  that  box  of  mortal 
dust  was  ever  precious  in  the  sight  of  those  old 
monks — and  the  costly  treasures  of  the  church,  not 
forgetting  their  books,  the  monks  fled  to  Ripon, 
and  the  see,  which  after  similar  adversities  their 
predecessors  one  hundred  and  thirteen  years  ago 
had  settled  at  Chester,  was  forever  removed.  It 
is  true  three  or  four  months  after,  as  Symeon  of 
Durham  tells  us,  they  attempted  to  return,  but 
when  they  reached  a  place  called  Werdelan,  "  on 
the  east  and  near  unto  Durham,"  they  could  not 
move  the  bier  on  which  the  body  of  St.  Cuthbert 
was  carried,  although  they  applied  their  united 
strength  to  effect  it.  The  superstition,  or  perhaps 
simplicity,  of  the  monks  instantly  interpreted  this 
into  a  manifestation  of  divine  interference,  and 
they  resolved  not  to  return  again  to  their  old  spot. 
And  we  are  further  told  that  after  three  days' 
fasting  and  prayer,  the  Lord  vouchsafed  to  reveal 
to  them  that  they  should  bear  the  saintly  burden 
to  Durham,  a  command  which  they  piously  and 
cheerfully  obeyed.  Having  arrived  there,  they 
fixed  on  a  wild  and  uncultivated  site,  and  making 
a  simple  oratory  of  wattles  for  the  temporary  re- 
ception of  their  relics,  they  set  zealously  to  work — 
for  these  old  monks  well  knew  what  labor  was — to 
cut  down  wood,  to  clear  the  ground,  and  build  an 
habitation  for  themselves.  Shortly  after,  in  the 
wilderness  of  that  neglected  spot,  the  worthy 
bishop  Aldwine  erected  a  goodly  church  of  stone 
to  the  honor  of  God,  and  as  a  humble  tribute  of 
gratitude  and  love ;  and  so  it  was  that  Aldwine, 


BIBLIOMANIA.  loi 

the  last  bishop  of  Chester-on-the-Street,  was  the 
first  of  Durham. 

When  WilHam  Carelepho,  a  Norman  monk, 
was  consecrated  bishop,  the  church  had  so  in- 
creased in  wealth  and  usefulness,  that  fresh  wants 
arose,  more  space  was  requisite,  and  a  grander 
structure  would  be  preferable;  the  bishop  there- 
upon pulled  the  old  church  of  Aldwine  down  and 
commenced  the  erection  of  a  more  magnificent  one 
in  its  place,  as  the  beauty  of  Durham  cathedral 
sufficiently  testifies  even  now ;  and  will  not  the 
lover  of  artistic  beauty  award  his  praise  to  the 
Norman  bishop — those  massive  columns  and  stu- 
pendous arches  excite  the  admiring  wonder  of  all ; 
built  on  a  rocky  eminence  and  surrounded  by  all 
the  charms  of  a  romantic  scenery,  it  is  one  of  the 
finest  specimens  of  architecture  which  the  enthu- 
siasm of  monkish  days  dedicated  to  piety  and  to 
God.  Its  liberal  founder  however  did  not  live  to 
see  it  finished,  for  he  died  in  the  year  1095,  two 
years  after  laying  its  foundation  stone.  His  book- 
loving  propensities  have  been  honorably  recorded, 
and  not  only  was  he  fond  of  reading,  but  kept  the 
pens  of  the  scribes  in  constant  motion,  and  used 
himself  to  superintend  the  transcription  of  manu- 
scripts, as  the  colophon  of  a  folio  volume  in  Dur- 
ham library  fully  proves.*  The  monkish  biblio- 
philes of  his  church  received  from  him  a  precious 
gift  of  about  40  volumes,  containing  among  other 
valuable  books  Prosper,  Pompeii,  Tertullian,  and  a 
great  Bible  in  two  volumes.f 

*  Tertia  Quinquagina  Augustini,  marked  B.  ii.  14. 
t  Surtee  publications,  vol.  i.  p.  117. 


102  BIBLIOMANIA. 

It  would  have  been  difficult  perhaps  to  have 
found  in  those  days  a  body  of  monks  so  "bookish" 
as  those  of  Durham ;  not  only  did  they  transcribe 
with  astonishing  rapidity,  proving  that  there  was 
no  want  of  vellum  there,  but  they  must  have 
bought  or  otherwise  collected  a  great  number  of 
books ;  for  the  see  of  Durham,  in  the  early  part  of 
the  1 2th  century,  could  show  a  library  embracing 
nearly  300  volumes.* 

Nor  let  the  reader  imagine  that  the  collection 
possessed  no  merit  in  a  literary  point  of  view,  or 
that  the  monks  cared  for  little  else  save  legends  of 
saints  or  the  literature  of  the  church  ;  the  catalogue 
proves  them  to  have  enjoyed  a  more  liberal  and  a 
more  refined  taste,  and  again  display  the  cloistered 
students  of  the  middle  ages  as  the  preservers  of 
classic  learning.  This  is  a  point  worth  observing  ) 
on  looking  over  the  old  parchment  catalogues  of 
the  monks ;  for  as  by  their  Epistles  we  obtain  a 
knowledge  of  their  intimacy  with  the  old  writers, 
and  the  use  they  made  of  them,  so  by  their  cata- 
logues we  catch  a  glimpse  of  the  means  they  pos- 
sessed of  becoming  personally  acquainted  with 
their  beauties ;  by  the  process  much  light  may  be 
thrown  on  the  gloom  of  those  long  past  times,  and 
perhaps  we  shall  gain  too  a  better  view  of  the  state  \ 
of  learning  existing  then.  But  that  the  reader-Nl 
may  judge  for  himself,  I  extract  the  names  of  some 
of  the  writers  whom  the  monks  of  Durham  pre- 
served and  read : 

*  This  catalogue  is  preserved  at  Durham,  in  the  library  of  the 
Dean  and  Chapter,  marked  B.  iv.  24.  It  is  printed  in  the  Surtee 
publications,  vol.  i.  p.  i. 


BIBLIOMANIA. 


Ids 


Alcuin. 

Galen. 

Persius. 

Ambrose. 

Gregory. 

Priscian. 

Aratores. 

Haimo. 

Peter  Lombard. 

Anselm. 

Horace. 

Plato. 

Augustine. 

Homer. 

Pompeius  Trogus. 

Aviany. 

Hugo. 

Quintilian, 

Bede. 

Juvenal. 

Rabanus. 

Boethius. 

Isidore. 

Solinus. 

Beniard. 

Josephus. 

Servius. 

Cassian. 

Lucan. 

Statius. 

Cassiodorus. 

Marcianus. 

Terence. 

Claudius. 

Maximian. 

TuUy. 

Cyprian. 

Orosius. 

Theodulus. 

Donatus. 

Ovid. 

Virgil. 

Esop. 

Prudentius. 

Gesta  Anglorum. 

Eutropius. 

Prosper. 

Gesta  Normanorum. 

Hugh  de  Pussar,*  consecrated  bishop  in  1153, 
is  the  next  who  attracts  our  attention  by  his  biblio- 
manical  renown.  He  possessed  perhaps  the  finest 
copy  of  the  Holy  Scriptures  of  any  private  collector ; 
and  he  doubtless  regarded  his  "-unam  Bibliam  in 
iv.  magnis  voluminibus"  with  the  veneration  of  a 
divine  and  the  fondness  of  a  student.  He  collected 
what  in  those  times  was  deemed  a  respectable 
library,  and  bequeathed  no  less  than  sixty  or 
seventy  volumes  to  the  Durham  monks,  including 
his  great  Bible,  which  has  ever  since  been  preserved 
with  religious  care ;  from  a  catalogue  of  them  we 
learn  his  partiality  for  classical  literature  ;  a  Tully, 
Sedulus,  Priscian,  and  Claudius,  are  mentioned 
among  them.f 

*  "  King  Stephen  was  vncle  vnto  him." — Godwin's  Cat.  of 
Bishops,  511. 

f  He  died  in  1195. — Godwin,  p.  735.  He  gave  them  also 
another  Bible  in  two  volumes  ;  a  list  of  the  whole  is  printed  in  the 
Surtee  publications,  vol.  i.  p.  118. 


104  BIBLIOMANIA. 

Anthony  Bek,  who  was  appointed  to  the  see  in 
the  year  1283,  was  a  most  ambitious  and  haughty 
prelate,  and  caused  great  dissensions  in  his  church. 
History  proves  how  Httle  he  was  adapted  for  the 
responsible  duties  of  a  bishop,  and  points  to  the 
field  of  battle  or  civil  pomp  as  most  congenial  to 
his  disposition.  He  ostentatiously  displayed  the 
splendor  of  a  Palatine  Prince,  when  he  contributed 
his  powerful  aid  to  the  cause  of  his  sovereign,  in 
the  Scottish  war,  by  a  retinue  of  500  horse,  1000 
foot,  140  knights,  and  26  standard  bearers,*  ren- 
dered doubly  imposing  in  those  days  of  saintly 
worship  and  credulity,  by  the  patronage  of  St. 
Cuthbert,  under  whole  holy  banner  they  marched 
against  a  brave  and  noble  foe.  His  arbitrary 
temper  caused  sad  quarrels  in  the  cloister,  which 
ultimately  gave  rise  to  a  tedious  law  proceeding 
between  him  and  the  prior  about  the  year  1300  ;f 
from  a  record  of  this  affair  we  learn  that  the  bishop 
had  borrowed  some  books  from  the  library  which 
afterwards  he  refused  to  return  ;  there  was  among 
them  a  Decretal,  a  history  of  England,  a  Missal, 
and  a  volume  called  "  The  book  of  St.  Cuthbert, 
in  which  the  secrets  of  the  monastery  are  written," 
which  was  alone  valued  at  ;^200,  J  probably  in  con- 
sideration of  the  important  and  delicate  matters 
contained  therein. 

*  Surtee's  Hist,  of  Durham,  vol.  i,  p.  xxxii.  "  He  was  wonder- 
full  rich,  not  onely  in  ready  money  but  in  lands  also,  and  temporall 
revenues.  For  he  might  dispend  yeerely  5000  marks." — Godwin^ s 
Cat.  Eng.  Bish.  410.  1601,  p.  520. 

t  Robert  de  Graystane's  ap.  Wharton's  Angl.  Sacr.  p.  748,  torn.  i. 
— Hutchinson's  Durham,  vol.  i.  p.  244. 

X  Surtee  publ.  vol.  i.  p.  121. 


BIBLIOMANIA.  165 

These  proceedings  were  instituted  by  prior 
Hoton,  who  was  fond  of  books,  and  had  a  great 
esteem  for  learning ;  he  founded  a  college  at  Ox- 
ford for  the  monkish  students  of  his  church.*  On 
more  than  one  occasion  he  sent  parcels  of  books 
to  Oxford  ;  in  a  list  of  an  early  date  it  appears  that 
the  monks  of  Durham  sent  at  one  time  twenty 
volumes,  and  shortly  after  fifteen  more,  consisting 
principally  of  church  books  and  lives  of  saints.f 
The  numbers  thus  taken  from  their  library  the 
monks,  with  that  love  of  learning  for  which  they 
were  so  remarkable,  anxiously  replaced,  by  pur- 
chasing about  twenty  volumes,  many  of  which  con- 
tained a  great  number  of  small  but  choice  pieces.  J 

Robert  de  Graystane,  a  monk  of  Durham,  was 
elected  bishop  by  the  prior  and  chapter,  and  con- 
firmed on  the  loth  of  November,  1333,  but  the 
king,  Edward  III.,  wishing  to  advance  his  treasurer 
to  that  see,  refused  his  sanction  to  the  proceed- 
ing; monk  Robert  was  accordingly  deposed,  and 
Richard  Angraville  received  the  mitre  in  his  stead. 
He  was  consecrated  on  the  19th  of  December  in 
the  same  year,  by  John  Stratford,  archbishop  of! 
Canterbury,  and  installed  by  proxy  on  the  loth  of  I 
January,  1334. 

Angraville,  Aungerville,  or  as  he  is  more  com- 
monly called  Richard  de  Bury,  is  a  name  which 
every  bibliophile  will  honor  and  esteem ;  he  was 
indeed  a  bibliomaniac  of  the  first  order,  and  a 
sketch  of  his  life  is  not  only  indispensable  here, 

*  Raine's  North  Durham,  p.  85. 
f  Surtee  public,  vol.  i.  p.  39-40. 
t  Ibid.,  vol.  i.  p.  41. 


io6  BIBLIOMANIA. 

but  cannot  fail  to  interest  the  book-loving  reader. 
But  before  entering  more  at  large  into  his  bookish 
propensities  and  talents,  it  will  be  necessary  to  say 
something  of  his  early  days  and  the  illustrious 
career  which  attended  his  political  and  ecclesiastical 
life.  Richard  de  Bury,  the  son  of  Sir  Richard 
Angraville,  was  born,  as  his  name  implies,  at  Bury 
St.  Edmunds,  in  Suffolk,  in  the  year  1287.* 

Great  attention  was  paid  to  the  instruction  of 
his  youthful  mind  by  his  maternal  uncle,  John  de 
Willowby,  a  priest,  previous  to  his  removal  to  Ox- 
ford. At  the  university  he  obtained  honorable 
distinction,  as  much  for  his  erudition  and  love  of 
books  as  for  the  moral  rectitude  of  his  behavior. 
These  pleasing  traits  were  the  stepping  stones  to 
his  future  greatness,  and  on  the  strength  of  them 
he  was  selected  as  one  fully  competent  to  under- 
take the  education  of  Edward  Prince  of  Wales, 
afterwards  the  third  king  of  that  name  ;  and  to 
Richard  de  Bury  "  may  be  traced  the  love  for  liter- 
ature and  the  arts  displayed  by  his  pupil  when  on 
the  throne.  He  was  rewarded  with  the  lucrative 
appointment  of  treasurer  of  Gascony."-|" 

When  Edward,  the  prince  of  Wales,  was  sent 
to  Paris  to  assume  the  dominion  of  Guienne,  which 
the  king  had  resigned  in  his  favor,  he  was  accompa- 
nied by  queen  Isabella,  his  mother,  whose  criminal 
frailty,  and  afterwards  conspiracy,  with  Mortimer, 
aroused  the  just  indignation  of  her  royal  husband  ; 
and  commenced  those  civil  dissensions  which  ren- 

•  Chambre  Contin.  Hist.  Dunelm.  apud  Wharton  Angliae 
Sacra,  torn.  i.  p.  765. 

t  Lord  Campbell's  Lives  of  the  Lord  Chancellors,  vol.  i.  p.  219. 


BIBLIOMANIA.  lo; 

dered  the  reign  of  Edward  II.  so  disastrous  and 
turbulent.  It  was  dicing  these  commotions  that 
Richard  de  Bury  became  a  zealous  partizan  of  the 
queen,  to  whom  he  fled,  and  ventured  to  supply 
her  pecuniary  necessities  from  the  royal  revenues  ; 
for  this,  however,  he  was  surrounded  with  imminent 
danger ;  for  the  king,  instituting  an  inquiry  into 
these  proceedings,  attempted  his  capture,  which  he 
narrowly  escaped  by  secreting  himself  in  the  belfry 
of  the  convent  of  Brothers  Minor  at  Paris.* 

When  the  "  most  invincible  and  most  magnifi- 
cent king"  Edward  III.  was  firmly  seated  upon  the 
throne,  dignity  and  power  was  lavishly  bestowed 
on  this  early  bibliomaniac.  In  an  almost  incredible 
space  of  time  he  was  appointed  cofferer  to  the; 
king,  treasurer  of  the  wardrobe,  archdeacon  of 
Northampton,  prebendary  of  Lincoln,  Sarum,  Litch-i 
field,  and  shortly  afterwards  keeper  of  the  privy 
seal,  which  office  he  held  for  five  years.  During 
this  time  he  twice  undertook  a  visit  to  Italy,  on  a 
mission  to  the  supreme  pontiff,  John  XXII.,  who 
not  only  entertained  him  with  honor  and  distinc- 
tion, but  appointed  him  chaplain  to  his  principal 
chapel,  and  gave  him  a  bull,  nominating  him  to  the 
first  vacant  see  in  England. 

He  acquired  whilst  there  an  honor  which  re- 
flected more  credit  than  even  the  smiles  of  his  holi- 
ness— the  brightest  of  the  Italian  poets,  Petrarch 
of  never  dying  fame — bestowed  upon  him  his 
acquaintance  and  lasting  friendship.  De  Bury 
entered  Avignon  for  the  first  time  in  the  same 

*  Absconditus  est  in  Campanili  fratrum  minorum. — Chambre 
ap.  Wharton^  torn.  i.  p.  765 


io8  BIBLIOMANIA. 

year  that  Petrarch  took  up  his  residence  there,  in 
the  house  of  Colonna,  bishop  of  Lombes :  two  such 
enhghtened  scholars  and  indefatigable  book  col- 
lectors, sojourning  in  the  same  city,  soon  formed 
an  intimacy.*  How  interesting  must  their  friendly 
meetings  have  been,  and  how  delightful  the  hours 
spent  in  Petrarch's  library,  which  was  one  of  great 
extent  and  rarity ;  and  it  is  probable  too  that  De 
Bury  obtained  from  the  poet  a  few  treasures  to 
enrich  his  own  stores ;  for  the  generosity  of  Petrarch 
was  so  excessive,  that  he  could  scarcely  withhold 
what  he  knew  was  so  dearly  coveted.  His  benev- 
olence on  one  occasion  deprived  him  and  posterity 
of  an  inestimable  volume  ;  he  lent  some  manuscripts 
of  the  classics  to  his  old  master,  who,  needing 
pecuniary  aid,  pawned  them,  and  Cicero's  books, 
De  Gloria,  were  in  this  manner  irrecoverably  lost.f 
Petrarch  acted  like  a  true  lover  of  learning ;  for 
when  the  shadows  of  old  age  approached,  he 
presented  his  library,  full  of  rare  and  ancient 
manuscripts,  many  of  them  enriched  by  his  own 
notes,  to  the  Venetian  Senate,  and  thus  laid  the 
foundation  of  the  library  of  Saint-Marc ;  he  always 
employed  a  number  of  transcribers,  who  invariably 
accompanied  him  on  his  journeys,  and  he  kept 
horses  to  carry  his  books. J  His  love  of  reading 
was  intense.  *'  Whether,"  he  writes  in  one  of  his 
epistles,  "  I  am  being  shaved,  or  having  my  hair 
cut,  whether  I  am  riding  on  horseback  or  taking 
my  meals,  I  either  read  myself  or  get  some  one  to 

•  In  one  of  his  letters  Petrarch  speaks  of  De  Bury  as  Virum 
ardentis  ingenii,  Pet.  ep.  1-3. 

t  Epist.  Seniles,  lib.  xvi.  ep.  i. 

t  Foscolo's  Essays  on  Petrarch,  p.  151. 


BIBLIOMANIA.  109 

read  to  me ;  on  the  table  where  I  dine,  and  by  the 
side  of  my  bed,  I  have  all  the  materials  for  writing.* 
With  the  friendship  of  such  a  student,  how  charm- 
ing must  have  been  the  visit  of  the  English  am- 
bassador, and  how  much  valuable  and  interesting 
information  must  he  have  gleaned  by  his  inter- 
course with  Petrarch  and  his  books.  At  Rome 
Richard  de  Bury  obtained  many  choice  volumes 
and  rare  old  manuscripts  of  the  classics ;  for  at 
Rome  indeed,  at  that  time,  books  had  become  an 
important  article  of  commerce,  and  many  foreign 
collectors  besides  the  English  bibliomaniac  resorted 
there  for  these  treasures :  to  such  an  extend  was 
this  carried  on,  that  the  jealousy  of  Petrarch  was 
aroused,  who,  in  addressing  the  Romans,  exclaims  : 
"Are  you  not  ashamed  that  the  wrecks  of  your 
ancient  grandeur,  spared  by  the  inundation  of  the 
barbarians,  are  daily  sold  by  your  miscalculating 
avarice  to  foreigners?  And  that  Rome  is  no  where 
less  known  and  less  loved  than  at  Rome  ?"f 

The  immense  ecclesiastical  and  civil  revenues 
which  Aungraville  enjoyed,  enabled  him  whilst  in 
Italy  to  maintain  a  most  costly  and  sumptuous 
establishment :  in  his  last  visit  alone  he  is  said  to 
have  expended  5,000  marks,  and  he  never  appeared 
in  public  without  a  numerous  retinue  of  twenty 
clerks  and  thirty-six  esquires ;  an  appearance  which 
better  became  the  dignity  of  his  civil  office,  than 
the  Christian  humility  of  his  ecclesiastical  func- 
tions. On  his  return  from  this  distinguished  so- 
journ, he  was  appointed,  as  we  have  said  before, 

*  Foscolo's  Essays  on  Petrarch,  p.  156.     Famil.  ep.  Ixxii. 
f  Hortatio  ad  Nicol.  Laurent  Petrar.,  Op.  vol.  i.  p.  596. 


no  BIBLIOMANIA. 

through  the  Instrumentality  of  Edward  III.,  to  the 
bishopric  of  Durham.  But  not  content  with  these 
high  preferments,  his  royal  master  advanced  him  to 
still  greater  honor,  and  on  the  28th  of  September, 
1334,  he  was  made  Lord  Chancellor  of  England, 
which  office  he  filled  till  the  5th  of  June,  1335,  when 
he  exchanged  it  for  that  of  high  treasurer.  He 
was  twice  appointed  ambassador  to  the  king  of 
France,  respecting  the  claims  of  Edward  of  Eng- 
land to  the  crown  of  that  country.  De  Bury, 
whilst  negociating  this  affair,  visited  Antwerp  and 
Brabant  for  the  furtherance  of  the  object  of  his 
mission,  and  he  fully  embraced  this  rare  opportu- 
nity of  adding  to  his  literary  stores,  and  returned 
to  his  fatherland  well  laden  with  many  choice  and 
costly  manuscripts ;  for  in  all  his  perilous  missions 
he  carried  about  with  him,  as  he  tells  us,  that  love 
of  books  which  many  waters  could  not  extinguish, 
but  which  greatly  sweetened  the  bitterness  of 
peregrination.  Whilst  at  Paris  he  was  especially 
assiduous  in  collecting,  and  he  relates  with  intense 
rapture,  how  many  choice  libraries  he  found  there 
full  of  all  kinds  of  books,  which  tempted  him  to 
spend  his  money  freely ;  and  with  a  gladsome  heart 
he  gave  his  dirty  lucre  for  treasures  so  inestimable 
to  the  bibliomaniac. 

Before  the  commencement  of  the  war  which 
arose  from  the  disputed  claims  of  Edward,  Richard 
de  Bury  returned  to  enjoy  in  sweet  seclusion  his 
bibliomanical  propensities.  The  modern  biblio- 
philes who  know  what  it  is  to  revel  in  the  enjoy- 
ment of  a  goodly  library,  luxuriant  in  costly  bind- 
ings and  rich  in  bibliographical  rarities,  who  are 


BIBLIOMANIA,  in 

fully  susceptible  to  the  delights  and  exquisite  sensi- 
bilities of  that  sweet  madness  called  bibliomania, 
will  readily  comprehend  the  multiplied  pleasures 
of  that  early  and  illustrious  bibliophile  in  the  seclu- 
sion of  Auckland  Palace ;  he  there  ardently  applied 
his  energies  and  wealth  to  the  accumulation  of 
books ;  and  whilst  engaged  in  this  pleasing  avoca- 
tion, let  us  endeavor  to  catch  a  glimpse  of  him. 
Chambre,  to  whom  we  are  indebted  for  many  of 
the  above  particulars,  tells  us  that  Richard  de  Bury 
was  learned  in  the  governing  of  his  house,  hos- 
pitable to  strangers,  of  great  charity,  and  fond  of 
disputation  with  the  learned,  but  he  principally 
delighted  in  a  multitude  of  books,  Iste  summe  delec- 
tabatur  multitudine  librorum*  and  possessed  more 
books  than  all  the  bishops  put  together,  an  asser- 
tion which  requires  some  modification,  and  must 
not  be  too  strictly  regarded,  for  book  collecting  at 
that  time  was  becoming  a  favorite  pursuit ;  still  the 
language  of  Chambre  is  expressive,  and  clearly 
proves  how  extensive  must  have  been  his  libraries, 
one  of  which  he  formed  in  each  of  his  various 
palaces,  diversis  maneriis.  So  engrossed  was  that 
worthy  bishop  with  the  passion  of  book  collecting, 
that  his  dormitory  was  stTQ.^&6.  jucebant  with  them, 
in  every  nook  and  corner  choice  volumes  were 
scattered,  so  that  it  was  almost  impossible  for  any 
person  to  enter  without  placing  his  feet  upon  some 
book.f  He  kept  in  regular  employment  no  small 
assemblage  of  antiquaries,  scribes,  bookbinders, 
correctors,  illuminators,  and  all  such  persons  who 

*  Apud  Wharton  Ang.  Sac.  torn.  i.  p.  765. 
t  Ibid. 


112  BIBLIOMANIA. 

were   capable   of   being   useful    in   the  service   of 
books,  librorum  servitiis  utiliter.^ 

During  his  retirement  he  wrote  a  book,  from 
the  perusal  of  which  the  bibliomaniac  will  obtain  a 
full  measure  of  delight  and  instruction.  It  is  a  faith- 
ful record  of  the  life  and  experience  of  this  biblio- 
phile of  the  olden  time.  He  tells  us  how  he  col- 
lected his  vellum  treasures — his  **  crackling  tomes  " 
so  rich  in  illuminations  and  calligraphic  art ! — how 
he  preserved  them,  and  how  he  would  have  others 
read  them.  Costly  indeed  must  have  been  the 
book  gems  he  amassed  together;  for  foreign  coun- 
tries, as  well  as  the  scribes  at  home,  yielded  ample 
means  to  augment  his  stores,  and  were  incessantly 
employed  in  searching  for  rarities  which  his  heart 
yearned  to  possess.  He  completed  his  Philobiblon 
at  his  palace  at  Auckland  on  the  24th  of  January, 
i344-t 

*  MS.  Harleian,  No.  3224,  fo.  89,  b. 

t  There  are  two  MSS.  of  the  Philobiblon  in  the  British  Museum, 
which  I  quote  in  giving  my  Latin  Extracts.  The  first  is  in  the 
Cotton  collection,  marked  Appendix  iv.  fol.  103.  At  the  end  are 
these  lines,  Ric.  de  Aungervile  cognominato  de  Bury,  Dunelm. 
E'bisc.  Philobiblon  compietum  in  Manerio  de  Auckland,  d.  24  Jan. 
1344,  fol.  119,  b.  The  other  is  in  the  Harleian  Collection,  No.  3224, 
both  are  in  fine  preservation.  The  first  printed  edition  appeared  at 
Cologne,  1473,  in  4to,  without  pagination,  signatures,  or  catchwords, 
with  48  leaves,  26  lines  on  a  full  page ;  for  some  time,  on  account  of 
its  excessive  rarity,  which  kept  it  from  the  eyes  of  book-lovers, 
bibliographers  confused  it  with  the  second  edition  printed  by  John 
and  Conrad  Hiist,  at  Spires,  in  1483,  4to,  which,  like  the  first,  is 
without  pagination,  signatures,  or  catchwords,  but  it  has  only  39  pages, 
with  31  lines  on  a  full  page.  Two  editions  were  printed  in  1500,  4to, 
at  Pari-,  but  I  have  only  seen  one  of  them.  A  fifth  edition  was 
printed  at  Oxford  by  T.  J(ames),  4to,  1599.  In  1 614  it  was  published 
by  Goldastus  in  8vo,  at  Frankfort,  with  a  Philologicarium  Episto- 
latum  Centuria  una.  Another  edition  of  this  same  book  was  printed 
in  1674,  Svo,  at  Leipsic,  and  a  still  better  edition  appeared  in  1703 


BIBLIOMANIA.  113 

We  learn  from  the  prologue  to  this  rare  and 
charming  little  volume  how  true  and  genuine  a 
biblomaniac  was  Richard  de  Bury,  for  he  tells  us 
there,  that  a  vehement  love  amor  excitet  of  books 
had  so  powerfully  seized  all  the  faculties  of  his 
mind,  that  dismissing  all  other  avocations,  he  had 
applied  the  ardor  of  his  thoughts  to  the  acquisition 
of  books.  Expense  to  him  was  quite  an  after- 
thought, and  he  begrudged  no  amount  to  possess 
a  volume  of  rarity  or  antiquity.  Wisdom,  he  says, 
is  an  infinite  treasure  infinitus  thesaurus,  the  value 
of  which,  in  his  opinion,  was  beyond  all  things  ;  for 
how,  he  asks,  can  the  sum  be  too  great  which  pur- 
chases such  vast  delight.  We  cannot  admire  the 
purity  of  his  Latin  so  much  as  the  enthusiasm 
which  pervades  it ;  but  in  the  eyes  of  the  bibliophile 
this  will  amply  compensate  for  his  minor  imper- 
fections. When  expatiating  on  the  value  of  his 
books  he  appears  to  unbosom,  as  it  were,  all  the 
inward  rapture  of  love.  A  very  helluo  librorum — 
a  very  Maliabechi  of  a  collector,  yet  he  encouraged 
no  selfish  feeling  to  alloy  his  pleasure  or  to  mingle 
bitterness  with  the  sweets  of  his  avocation.  His 
knowledge  he  freely  imparted  to  others,  and  his 
books  he  gladly  lent.  This  is  apparent  in  the 
Philobiblon ;  and  his  generous  spirit  warms  his  dic- 
tion— not  always  chaste — into  a  fluent  eloquence. 
His  composition  overflows  with  figurative  expres- 
sions, yet  the  rude,  ungainly  form  on  which  they 

by  Schmidt,  in  4to.  The  Philobiblon  has  recently  been  translated 
by  Inglis,  8vo,  Lond.  1834,  with  much  accuracy  and  spirit,  and  I 
have  in  many  cases  availed  myself  of  this  edition,  though  I  do  not 
always  exactly  follow  it. 


ti4  BIBLIOMANIA. 

are  moulded  deprive  them  of  all  claim  to  elegance 
or  chastity ;  but  while  the  homeliness  of  his  diction 
fails  to  impress  us  with  an  idea  of  his  versatility  as 
a  writer,  his  chatty  anecdotal  style  rivets  and  keeps 
the  mind  amused,  so  that  we  rise  from  the  little 
book  with  the  consciousness  of  having  obtained 
much  profit  and  satisfaction  from  its  perusal.  Nor 
is  it  only  the  bibliomaniac  who  may  hope  to  taste 
this  pleasure  in  devouring  the  sweet  contents  of 
the  Philobiblon  ;  for  there  are  many  hints,  many 
wise  sayings,  and  many  singular  ideas  scattered 
over  its  pages,  which  will  amuse  or  instruct  the 
general  reader  and  the  lover  of  olden  literature. 
We  observe  too  that  Richard  de  Bury,  as  a 
writer,  was  far  in  advance  of  his  age,  and  his  work 
manifests  an  unusual  freedom  and  independence 
of  mind  in  its  author ;  for  although  living  in 
monkish  days,  when  the  ecclesiastics  were  almost 
supreme  in  power  and  wealth,  he  was  fully  sen- 
sible of  the  vile  corruptions  and  abominations 
which  were  spreading  about  that  time  so  fearfully 
among  some  of  the  cloistered  devotees — the  spot- 
less purity  of  the  primitive  times  was  scarce  known 
then — and  the  dark  periods  of  the  middle  ages  were 
bright  and  holy,  when  compared  with  the  looseness 
and  carnality  of  those  turbulent  days.  Richard  de 
Bury  dipped  his  pen  in  gall  when  he  spoke  of  these 
sad  things,  and  doubtless  many  a  revelling  monk 
winced  under  the  lashing  words  he  applied  to  them ; 
not  only  does  he  upbraid  them  for  their  carelessness 
in  religion,  but  severely  reprimands  their  inatten- 
tion to  literature  and  learning.  "  The  monks,"  he 
says,  *'  in  the  present  day  seem  to  be  occupied  in 


BIBLIOMANIA.  115 

emptying  cups,  not  in  correcting  codices,  Calicibus 
epotandis,  non  codicibus  emendandis,  which  they 
mingle  with  the  lascivious  music  of  Timotheus,  and 
emulate  his  immodest  manners,  so  that  the  sportive 
song  cantus  ludentis,  and  not  the  plaintive  hymn, 
proceeds  from  the  cells  of  the  monks.  Flocks  and 
fleeces,  grain  and  granaries,  gardens  and  olives, 
potions  and  goblets,  are  in  this  day  lessons  and 
studies  of  the  monks,  except  some  chosen  few.*  He 
speaks  in  equally  harsh  terms  of  the  religious  men- 
dicants. He  accuses  them  of  forgetting  the  words 
and  admonitions  of  their  holy  founder,  who  was  a 
great  lover  of  books.  He  wishes  them  to  imitate  the 
ancient  members  of  that  fraternity,  who  were  poor 
in  spirit,  but  most  rich  in  faith.  But  it  must  be  re- 
membered, that  about  this  time  the  mendicant  friars 
were  treated  with  undeserved  contempt,  and  much 
ill  feeling  rose  against  them  among  the  clergy,  but 
the  clergy  were  somewhat  prejudiced  in  their  judg- 
ment. The  order  of  St.  Dominic,  which  a  century 
before  gloried  in  the  approbation  of  the  pope,  and 
in  the  enjoyment  of  his  potential  bulls,  now  winced 
under  gloomy  and  foreboding  frowns.  The  sover- 
eign Pontiff  Honorius  HI.  gratefully  embraced  the 
service  of  these  friars,  and  confirmed  their  order 
with  important  privileges.  His  successor,  Gregory 
IX.,  ratified  these  favors  to  gain  their  useful  aid  in 
propping  up  the  papal  power,  and  commanded  the 
ecclesiastics  by  a  bull  to  receive  these  "well-be- 
loved children  and  preaching  friars"  of  his,  with 

*  "  Greges  et  Vellera,  Fruges  et  honea,  Porri  et  Olera,  Potus  et 
Patera  rectiones  sunt  hodie  et  studio  monachorum." — MS.  Harl.  2324, 
fol.  79,  a;  MS.  Cot.  ap.  iv.  fo.  108,  a. 


Ii6  BIBLIOMANIA, 

hospitality  and  respect.  Thus  estabHshed,  they 
were  able  to  bear  the  tossings  to  and  fro  which  suc- 
ceeding years  produced ;  but  in  Richard  de  Bury's 
time  darker  clouds  were  gathering — great  men  had 
severely  chastized  them  with  their  pens  and  de- 
nounced them  in  their  preachings.  Soon  after  a 
host  of  others  sprang  up — among  the  most  remark- 
able of  whom  were  Johannes  Poliaco,  and  Fitz- 
ralph,  Archbishop  of  Armagh,  who  was  a  dear 
friend  and  chaplain  of  Richard  de  Bury's  and  many 
learned  disputations  were  carried  on  between  them.* 
The  celebrated  oration  of  Fitzralph's,  cited  in  the 
presence  of  the  pope,  was  a  powerful  blow  to  the 
mendicant  friars — an  examination  of  the  matter  has 
rather  perplexed  than  cleared  the  subject,  and  I 
find  it  difficult  which  side  to  favor,  the  clergy 
seem  to  denounce  the  begging  friars  more  from 
envy  and  interested  motives,  for  they  looked  with 
extreme  jealousy  at  the  encroachments  they  had 
made  upon  their  ecclesiastical  functions  of  confes- 
sion, absolution,  etc.,  so  profitable  to  the  church  in 
those  days.  In  these  matters  the  church  had 
hitherto  reserved  a  sole  monopoly,  and  the  clergy 
now  determined  to  protect  it  with  all  the  powers  of 
oratorial  denunciation  ;  but,  looking  beyond  this 
veil  of  prejudice,  I  am  prone  to  regard  them  fa- 
vorably, for  their  intense  love  of  books,  which 
they  sought  for  and  bought  up  with  passionate 
eagerness.  Fitzralph,  quite  unintentionally,  bestows 
a  bright  compliment  upon  them,  and  as  it  bears 
upon  our  subject  and  illustrates  the  learning  of 

•  Wharton  Ang.  Sac,  torn,  i.  p.  766,  he  is  called  Hicardus  Fiiz- 
Rause postomodum  Archiepiscopus  Armachanus. 


BIBLIOMANIA.  117 

the  time,  I  am  tempted  to  give  a  few  extracts ;  he 
sorely  laments  the  decrease  of  the  number  of  stu- 
dents in  the  university  of  Oxford  ;  "  So,"  says  he, 
"  that  yet  in  my  tyme,  in  the  universitie  of  Oxen- 
ford,  were  thirty  thousand  Scolers  at  ones ;  and 
now  beth  unnethe*  sixe  thousand."  f  All  the 
blame  of  this  he  lays  to  the  friars,  and  accuses  them 
of  doing  "  more  grete  damage  to  learning."  "  For 
these  orders  of  beggers,  for  endeless  wynnynges 
that  thei  geteth  by  beggyng  of  the  forseide  pryvy- 
leges  of  schriftes  and  sepultures  and  othere,  thei 
beth  now  so  multiplyed  in  conventes  and  in  persons. 
That  many  men  tellith  that  in  general  studies  un- 
nethe, is  it  founde  to  sillynge  a  profitable  book  of 
ye  faculte  of  art,  of  dyvynyte,  of  lawe  canon,  of 
phisik,  other  of  lawe  civil,  but  alle  bookes  beth 
y-bougt  of  Freres,  so  that  en  ech  convent  of  Freres 
is  a  noble  librarye  and  a  grete,  J  and  so  that  ene 
rech  Frere  that  hath  state  in  scole,  siche  as  thei  beth 
nowe,  hath  an  hughe  librarye.  And  also  y-sent  of 
my  Sugettes§  to  scole  thre  other  foure  persons, 
and  hit  is  said  me  that  some  of  them  beth  come 
home  azen  for  thei  myst  nougt|  finde  to  selle  ovn 
goode  Bible ;  nother  othere  couenable*|f  books." 
This  strange  accusation  proves  how  industriously 
the  friars  collected  books,  and  we  cannot  help 
regarding  them  with  much  esteem  for  doing  so. 
Richard  de  Bury  fully  admits  his  obligations  to  the 
mendicants,  from  whom  he  obtained  many  choice 
transcripts.     "When  indeed,"  says  he,  "we   hap. 

*  Scarcely. 

f  Translated  by  Trevisa,  MS.  Harleian,  No.  1900,  fol  11,  b. 

X  The  original  is  grandis  et  nobilis  libraria. 

%  Chaplain.  ||  Could  not.  IT  Profitable. 


ii8  BIBLIOMANIA. 

pened  to  turn  aside  to  the  towns  and  places  where 
the  aforesaid  paupers  had  convents,  we  were  not 
slack  in  visiting  their  chests  and  other  repositories 
of  books,  for  there,  amidst  the  deepest  poverty,  we 
found  the  most  exalted  riches  treasured  up  ;  there, 
in  their  satchells  and  baskets,  we  discovered  not 
only  the  crumbs  that  fell  from  the  master's  table 
for  the  little  dogs,  but  indeed  the  shew  bread  with- 
out leaven,  the  bread  of  angels,  containing  in  itself 
all  that  is  delectable ;  and  moreover,  he  says,  that 
he  found  these  friars  "  not  selfish  hoarders,  but 
meet  professors  of  enlightened  knowledge."* 

In  the  seventh  chapter  of  his  work,  he  deplores 
the  sad  destruction  of  books  by  war  and  fire,  and 
laments  the  loss  of  the  700,000  volumes,  which 
happened  in  the  Alexandrian  expedition ;  but  the 
eighth  chapter  is  the  one  which  the  bibliomaniac 
will  regard  with  the  greatest  interest,  for  Richard 
de  Bury  tells  us  there  how  he  collected  together 
his  rich  and  ample  library.  "  For  although,"  he 
writes,  "  from  our  youth  we  have  ever  been  delighted 
to  hold  special  and  social  communion  with  literary 
men  and  lovers  of  books,  yet  prosperity  attending 
us,  having  obtained  the  notice  of  his  majesty  the 
king,  and  being  received  into  his  own  family,  we 
acquired  a  most  ample  facility  of  visiting  at  pleasure 
and  of  hunting,  as  it  were,  some  of  the  most  delight- 
ful covers,  the  public  and  private  libraries  privatas 
turn  communes,  both  of  the  regulars  and  seculars. 
-Indeed,  while  we  performed  the  duties  of  Chancellor 
and  Treasurer  of  the  most  invincible  and  ever 
magnificently  triumphant  king  of  England,  Ed- 
*  Philobiblon,  transl.  by  Inglis,  p.  56. 


BIBLIOMANIA. 


119 


ward  III.,  of  that  name  after  the  conquest,  whose 
days  may  the  Most  High  long  and  tranquilly  deign 
to  preserve.  After  first  inquiring  into  the  things 
that  concerned  his  court,  and  then  the  public  affairs 
of  his  kingdom,  an  easy  opening  was  afforded  us, 
under  the  countenance  of  royal  favor,  for  freely 
searching  the  hiding  places  of  books.  For  the 
flying  fame  of  our  love  had  already  spread  in  all 
directions,  and  it  was  reported  not  only  that  we  had 
a  longing  desire  for  books,  and  especially  for  old 
ones,  but  that  any  one  could  more  easily  obtain  our 
favors  by  quartos  than  by  money.*  Wherefore, 
when  supported  by  the  bounty  of  the  aforesaid 
prince  of  worthy  memory,  we  were  enabled  to 
oppose  or  advance,  to  appoint  or  discharge ;  crazy 
quartos  and  tottering  folios,  precious  however  in 
our  sight  as  well  as  in  our  affections,  flowed  in  most 
rapidly  from  the  great  and  the  small,  instead  of  new 
year's  gift  and  remunerations,  and  instead  of  pre- 
sents and  jewels.  Then  the  cabinets  of  the  most 
noble  monasteries  tunc  nobilissimos  monasterios 
were  opened,  cases  were  unlocked,  caskets  were 
unclasped  and  sleeping  volumes  soporata  volumina 
which  had  slumbered  for  long  ages  in  their  sepul- 
chres were  roused  up,  and  those  that  lay  hid  in 
dark  places  in  locis  tenebrosis  were  overwhelmed 
with  the  rays  of  a  new  light.     Books  heretofore 

*  "Curiam  deinde  vero  Rem.  publicam  Regni  sui  Cacellarii, 
viz. :  est  ac  Thesaurii  fugeremur  officiis,  patescebat  nobis  aditus 
faciles  regal  favoris  intuitu,  ad  libros  latebras  libere  perscruta  tandas 
amoris  quippe  nostri  fama  volatitis  jam  ubiqs.  percreluit  tam  qs.  libros 
et  tnaxime  veterum  ferabatur  cupidite  las  vestere  posse  vero  quemlibet 
nostrum  per  quatemos  facilius  quam  per  pecuniam  adipisa  favorem." 
—MS.  Harl.  fo.  85,  a.     MS.  Cott.  no,  b. 


120  BIBLIOMANIA. 

most  delicate  now  become  corrupted  and  abom- 
inable, lay  lifeless,  covered  indeed  with  the  excre- 
ments of  mice  and  pierced  through  with  the  gnawing 
of  worms;  and  those  that  were  formerly  clothed 
with  purple  and  fine  linen  were  now  seen  reposing 
in  dust  and  ashes,  given  over  to  oblivion  and  the 
abode  of  moths.  Amongst  these,  nevertheless,  as 
time  served,  we  sat  down  more  voluptuously  than 
the  delicate  physician  could  do  amidst  his  stores  of 
aromatics,  and  where  we  found  an  object  of  love, 
we  found  also  an  assuagement.  Thus  the  sacred 
vessel  of  science  came  into  the  power  of  our  dis- 
posal, some  being  given,  some  sold,  and  not  a  few 
lent  for  a  time.  Without  doubt  many  who  per- 
ceived us  to  be  contented  with  gifts  of  this  kind, 
studied  to  contribute  these  things  freely  to  our  use, 
which  they  could  most  conveniently  do  without  them- 
selves. We  took  care,  however,  to  conduct  the  busi- 
ness of  such  so  favorably,  that  the  profit  might  accrue 
to  them;  justice  suffered  therefore  no  detriment." 
Of  this,  however,  a  doubt  will  intrude  itself  upon 
our  minds,  in  defiance  of  the  affirmation  of  my  Lord 
Chancellor ;  indeed,  the  paragraph  altogether  is  un- 
favorable to  the  character  of  so  great  a  man,  and 
fully  proves  the  laxity  of  opinion,  in  those  days  of 
monkish  supremacy,  on  judicial  matters;  but  we 
must  be  generous,  and  allow  something  for  the 
corrupt  usages  of  the  age,  but  I  cannot  omit  a 
circumstance  clearly  illustrative  of  this  point,  which 
occurred  between  the  bibliomanical  Chancellor  and 
the  abbot  of  St.  Alban's,  the  affair  is  recorded  in 
the  chronicle  of  the  abbey,  and  transpired  during 
the  time  Richard  de  Bury  held  the  privy  seal ;  in 


BIBLIOMANIA,  121 

that  office  he  appears  to  have  favored  the  monks 
of  the  abbey  in  their  disputes  with  the  townspeople 
of  St.  Alban's  respecting  some  possessions  to  which 
the  monks  tenaciously  adhered  and  defended  as 
their  rightful  property.  Richard  de  Wallingford, 
who  was  then  abbot,  convoked  the  elder  monks 
convocatis  senior ibus,  and  discussed  with  them,  as  to 
the  most  effectual  way  to  obtain  the  goodwill  and 
favor  of  de  Bury ;  after  due  consideration  it  was 
decided  that  no  gift  was  likely  to  prove  so  acceptable 
to  that  father  of  English  bibliomania  as  a  present 
of  some  of  their  choice  books,  and  it  was  at  last 
agreed  to  send  four  volumes,  "  that  is  to  say  Terence, 
a  Virgil,  a  Quintilian,  and  Jerome  against  Ruffinus," 
and  to  sell  him  many  others  from  their  library ;  this 
they  sent  him  intimation  of,  and  a  purchase  was 
ultimately  agreed  upon  between  them.  The  monks 
sold  to  that  rare  collector,  thirty-two  choice  tomes 
triginta  duos  libros,  for  the  sum  of  fifty  pounds  of 
silver  quinginta  libris  argenti.  *  But  there  were  other 
bibliophiles  and  bookworms  than  Richard  de  Bury 
in  old  England  then ;  for  many  of  the  brothers  of 
St.  Alban's  who  had  nothing  to  do  with  this  trans- 
action, cried  out  loudly  against  it,  and  denounced 
rather  openly  the  policy  of  sacrificing  their  mental 
treasures  for  the  acquisition  of  pecuniary  gain,  but 
fortunately  the  loss  was  only  a  temporary  one,  for 
on  the  death  of  Richard  de  Bury  many  of  these 
volumes  were  restored  to  the  monks,  who  in  return 

*  MS.  Cottonian  Claudius,  E.  iv.  fol.  203,  b.  WartorCs  Hist, 
of  Poetry,  Dissert,  ii.j  and  Hallam's  Middle  Ages,  vol.  ii.  p.  611. 
Both  notice  this  circumstance  as  a  proof  of  the  scarcity  of  books  in 
De  Bury's  time. 


122  BIBLIOMANIA. 

became  the  purchasers  from  his  executors  of  many 
a  rare  old  volume  from  the  bishop's  library,*  To 
resume  our  extracts  from  the  Philobiblon,  De  Bury 
proceeds  to  further  particulars  relative  to  his  book- 
collecting  career,  and  becomes  quite  eloquent  in 
detailing  these  circumstances ;  but  from  the  eighth 
chapter  we  shall  content  ourselves  with  one  more 
paragraph.  "Moreover,"  says  he,  "if  we  could 
have  amassed  cups  of  gold  and  silver,  excellent 
horses,  or  no  mean  sums  of  money,  we  could  in 
those  days  have  laid  up  abundance  of  wealth  for 
ourselves.  But  we  regarded  books  not  pounds, 
and  valued  codices  more  than  florens,  and  preferred 
paltry  pamphlets  to  pampered  palfreys. f  In  ad- 
dition to  this  we  were  charged  with  frequent  em- 
bassies of  the  said  prince  of  everlasting  memory, 
and  owing  to  the  multiplicity  of  state  affairs,  we 
were  sent  first  to  the  Roman  chair,  then  to  the 
court  of  France,  then  to  the  various  other  king- 
doms of  the  world,  on  tedious  embassies  and  in 
perilous  times,  carrying  about  with  us  that  fondness 
for  books,  which  many  waters  could  not  extin- 
guish. "J  The  booksellers  found  Richard  de  Bury 
a  generous  and   profitable   customer,    and   those 

*  Ibid.  Among  the  MSS.  in  the  Royal  Library,  there  is  a  copy 
of  John  of  Salisbury's  Ententicus  which  contains  the  following  note, 
**  Hunc  librum  fecit  dominus  Symon  abbas  S.  Albani,  quem  postea 
venditum  domino  Ricardo  de  Bury.  Episcope  Dunelmensi  emit 
Michael  abbas  S.  Albani  ab  executoribus  praedicti  episcopi,  A.  D. 
1345."  Marked  13  D.  iv.  3.  The  same  abbot  expended  a  large  sum 
in  buying  books  for  the  library,  but  we  shall  speak  more  of  Michael 
de  Wentmore  by  and  bye. 

t  "  Sed  revera  libros  non  libras  maluimus,  Codicesque  plus 
quam  florenos,  ac  pampletos  exiguos  incrussatis  proetulimus  pala- 
fridis."— MS.  Harl.  fo.  86,  a.     MS.  Cott.  fo.  in,  a. 

X  Inglis's  Translation,  p.  53. 


BIBLIOMANIA.  123 

residing  abroad  received  commissions  constantly 
from  him.  "  Besides  the  opportunities,"  he  writes, 
"already  touched  upon,  we  easily  acquired  the 
notice  of  the  stationers  and  librarians,  not  only 
within  the  provinces  of  our  native  soil,  but  of  those 
dispersed  over  the  kingdoms  of  France,  Germany, 
and  Italy."* 

Such  was  bibliomania  five  hundred  years  ago  ! 
and  does  not  the  reader  behold  in  it  the  very  type 
and  personification  of  its  existence  now  ?  does  he 
not  see  in  Richard  de  Bury  the  prototype  of  a 
much  honored  and  agreeable  bibliophile  of  our  own 
time  ?  Nor  has  the  renowned  "  Maister  Dibdin  " 
described  his  book-hunting  tours  with  more  enthu- 
siasm or  delight ;  with  what  a  thrill  of  rapture 
would  that  worthy  doctor  have  explored  those 
monastic  treasures  which  De  Bury  found  hid  in 
locis  ienebrosis,  antique  Bibles,  rare  Fathers,  rich 
Classics  or  gems  of  monkish  lore,  enough  to  fire 
the  brain  of  the  most  lymphatic  bibliophile,  were 
within  the  grasp  of  the  industrious  and  eager 
Richard  de  Bury — that  old  "  Amator  Librorum," 
like  his  imitators  of  the  present  day,  cared  not 
whither  he  went  to  collect  his  books — dust  and 
dirt  were  no  barriers  to  him  ;  at  every  nook  and 
corner    where   a   stationer's    stallf    appeared,    he 

•  Inglis's  Translation,  p.  58. 

t  The  Stationers  or  Booksellers  carried  on  their  business  on  open 
Stalls. — Hallam,  Lit.  Europe^  vol.  i.  p.  339.  It  is  pleasing  to  think 
that  the  same  temptations  which  allure  the  bookworm  now,  in  his 
perambulations,  can  claim  such  great  antiquity,  and  that  through  so 
many  centuries,  bibliophiles  and  bibliopoles  remain  unaltered  in  their 
habits  and  singularities;  but  alas!  this  worthy  relic  of  the  middle 
ages  I  fear  is  passing  into  oblivion.  Plate-glass  fronts  and  bulky 
expensive  catalogues  form  the  bookseller's  pride  in  these  days  of 


124  BIBLIOMANIA. 

would  doubtless  tarry  in  defiance  of  the  cold  winds 
or  scorching  sun,  exploring  the  ancient  tomes 
reposing  there.  Nor  did  he  neglect  the  houses 
of  the  country  rectors ;  and  even  the  humble 
habitations  of  the  rustics  were  diligently  ransacked 
to  increase  his  collections,  and  from  these  sources 
he  gleaned  many  rude  but  pleasing  volumes,  per- 
haps full  of  old  popular  poetry !  or  the  wild 
Romances  of  Chivalry  which  enlivened  the  halls 
and  cots  of  our  forefathers  in  Gothic  days. 

We  must  not  overlook  the  fact  that  this 
Treatise  on  the  Love  of  Books  was  written  as  an 
accompaniment  to  a  noble  and  generous  gift. 
Many  of  the  parchment  volumes  which  De  Bury 
had  collected  in  his  ^'perilous  embassies^'  he  gave, 
with  the  spirit  of  a  true  lover  of  learning,  to  the 
Durham  College  at  Oxford,  for  the  use  of  the 
Students  of  his  Church.  I  cannot  but  regret  that 
the  names  of  these  books,  of  which  he  had  made  a 
catalogue,*  have  not  been  preserved ;  perhaps  the 
document  may  yet  be  discovered  among  the  vast 
collections  of  manuscripts  in  the  Oxonian  libraries  ; 
but  the  book,  being  written  for  this  purpose,  the 
author  thought  it  consistent  that  full  directions 
should  be  given  for  the  preservation  and  regulation 
of  the  library,  and  we  find  the  last  chapter  devoted 
to  this  matter ;  but  we  must  not  close  the  Philo- 
biblon  without  noticing  his  admonitions  to  the 
students,  some  of  whom  he  upbraids  for  the  care- 
speed  and  progress,  and  offer  more  splendid  temptations  to  the 
collector,  but  sad  obstacles  to  the  hungry  student  and  black-letter 
bargain  hunters. 

*  Philob.  xix. 


BIBLIOMANIA.  125 

lessness  and  disrespect  which  they  manifest  in  per- 
using books.  "  Let  there,"  says  he,  with  all  the 
veneration  of  a  passionate  booklover,  "  be  a  modest 
decorum  in  opening  and  closing  of  volumes,  that 
they  may  neither  be  unclasped  with  precipitous 
haste,  nor  thrown  aside  after  inspection  without 
being  duly  closed."  *  Loving  and  venerating  a 
book  as  De  Bury  did,  it  was  agony  to  see  a  volume 
suffering  under  the  indignities  of  the  ignorant  or 
thoughtless  student  whom  he  thus  keenly  satirizes  : 
"  You  will  perhaps  see  a  stiffnecked  youth  lounging 
sluggishly  in  his  study,  while  the  frost  pinches  him 
in  winter  time ;  oppressed  with  cold  his  watery 
nose  drops,  nor  does  he  take  the  trouble  to  wipe  it 
with  his  handkerchief  till  it  has  moistened  the  book 
beneath  it  with  its  vile  dew ; "  nor  is  he  "  ashamed 
to  eat  fruit  and  cheese  over  an  open  book,  or  to 
transfer  his  empty  cup  from  side  to  side ;  he  re- 
clines his  elbow  on  the  volume,  turns  down  the 
leaves,  and  puts  bits  of  straw  to  denote  the  place 
he  is  reading ;  he  stuffs  the  book  with  leaves  and 
flowers,  and  so  pollutes  it  with  filth  and  dust." 
With  this  our  extracts  from  the  Philobiblon  must 
close ;  enough  has  been  said  and  transcribed  to 
place  the  Lord  Chancellor  of  the  puissant  King 
Edward  IIL  among  the  foremost  of  the  biblio- 
maniacs of  the  past,  and  to  show  how  valuable 
were  his  efforts  to  literature  and  learning ;  indeed, 
like    Petrarch  in   Italy  was   Richard  De    Bury  in 

*  Inglis,  p.  96.  "  In  primis  quidam  circa  claudenda  et  apienda 
volumina,  sit  matura  modestia;  ut  nee  prascipiti  festinatione  sol- 
vantur,  nee  inspectione  finita,  sina  clausura  debita  dimittantur." 
MS.  Harl.  fol.  103. 


126  BIBLIOMANIA. 

England :  both  enthusiastic  collectors  and  preser- 
vers of  ancient  manuscripts,  and  both  pioneers  of 
that  revival  of  European  literature  which  soon 
afterwards  followed.  In  the  fourteenth  century 
we  cannot  imagine  a  more  useful  or  more  essential 
person  than  the  bibliomaniac,  for  that  surely  was 
the  harvest  day  for  the  gathering  in  of  that  food 
on  which  the  mind  of  future  generations  were  to 
subsist.  And  who  reaped  so  laboriously  or  gleaned 
so  carefully  as  those  two  illustrious  scholars  ? 

Richard  de  Bury  was  no  unsocial  bookworm ; 
for  whilst  he  loved  to  seek  the  intercourse  of  the 
learned  dead,  he  was  far  from  being  regardless  of 
the  living.  Next  to  his  clasped  vellum  tomes, 
nothing  afforded  him  so  much  delight  as  an  erudite 
disputation  with  his  chaplains,  who  were  mostly 
men  of  acknowledged  learning  and  talent ;  among 
them  were  "  Thomas  Bradwardyn,  afterwards 
Archbishop  of  Canterbury ;  and  Richard  Fitz- 
Raufe,  afterwards  Archbishop  of  Armagh  ;  Walter 
Burley,  John  Maudyt,  Robert  Holcote,  Richard  of 
Kilwington,  all  Doctors  in  Theology,  omnes  Doc- 
tores  in  Theologia ;  Richard  Benworth,  afterwards 
Bishop  of  London,  and  Walter  Segraffe,  afterwards 
Bishop  of  Chester ; "  *  with  these  congenial  spirits 
Richard  de  Bury  held  long  and  pleasing  conversa- 
tions, doubtless  full  of  old  bookwisdom  and  quaint 
Gothic  lore,  derived  from  still  quainter  volumes ; 
and  after  meals  I  dare  say  they  discussed  the  choice 
volume  which  had  been  read  during  their  repast,  as 
was  the  pious  custom  of  those  old  days,  and  which 
was  not  neglected  by  De  Bury,  for  "  his  manner 

*  Chatnbre  ap,  Wharton^  torn,  i,  p.  766. 


BIBLIOMANIA.  127 

was  at  dinner  and  supper  time  to  have  some  good 
booke  read  unto  him."* 

And  now  in  bidding  farewell  to  the  illustrious 
Aungraville — for  little  more  is  known  of  his  bio- 
graphy— let  me:  not  forget  to  pay  a  passing  tribute 
of  respect  to  his  private  character,  which  is  right 
worthy  of  a  cherished  remembrance,  and  derives  its 
principal  lustre  from  the  eminent  degree  in  which 
he  was  endowed  with  the  greatest  of  Christian  vir- 
tues, and  which,  when  practised  with  sincerity,  cov- 
ereth  a  multitude  of  sins ;  his  charity,  indeed,  forms 
a  delightful  trait  in  the  character  of  that  great  man  ; 
every  week  he  distributed  food  to  the  poor ;  eight 
quarters  of  wheat  octo  quarteria  frumenti^  and  the 
fragments  from  his  own  table  comforted  the  indigent 
of  his  church  ;  and  always  when  he  journeyed  from 
Newcastle  to  Durham,  he  distributed  twelve  marks 
in  relieving  the  distresses  of  the  poor ;  from  Dur- 
ham to  Stockton  eight  marks  ;  and  from  the  same 
place  to  his  palace  at  Aukeland  five  marks ;  and 
and  when  he  rode  from  Durham  to  Middleham  he 
gave  away  one  hundred  shillings.f  Living  in  troub- 
lous times,  we  do  not  find  his  name  coupled  with 
any  great  achievement  in  the  political  sphere ;  his 
talents  were  not  the  most  propitious  for  a  states- 
man among  the  fierce  barons  of  the  fourteenth 
century  ;  his  spirit  loved  converse  with  the  departed 
great,  and  shone  more  to  advantage  in  the  quite 
closet  of  the  bibliomaniac,  or  in  fulfilling  the  bene- 
volent duties  of  a  bishop.  Yet  he  was  successful 
in  all  that  the  ambition  of  a  statesman  could  desire, 

*  Godwin  Cat.  of  Bish.  525. 

f  Chambre  ap.  Wharton,  torn.  i.  p.  766. 


128  BIBLIOMANIA. 

the  friend  and  confidant  of  his  king ;  holding  the 
highest  offices  in  the  state  compatible  with  his 
ecclesiastical  position,  with  wealth  in  abundance, 
and  blessed  with  the  friendship  of  the  learned  and 
the  good,  we  find  little  in  his  earthly  career  to 
darken  the  current  of  his  existence,  or  to  disturb 
the  last  hours  of  a  life  of  near  three  score  years. 
He  died  lamented,  honored,  and  esteemed,  at 
Aukeland  palace,  on  the  fourteenth  of  April,  in  the 
year  1345,  in  the  fifty-eighth  year  of  his  age,  and 
was  buried  with  all  due  solemnity  before  the  altar 
of  the  blessed  Mary  Magdalene,  at  the  south  angle 
of  the  church  of  Durham.  His  bones  are  now 
mingled  with  the  dust  and  gone,  but  his  memory  is 
engraven  on  tablets  of  life  ;  the  hearts  of  all  biblio- 
maniacs love  and  esteem  his  name  for  the  many 
virtues  with  which  it  was  adorned,  and  delight  to 
chat  with  his  choice  old  spirit  in  the  Philobiblon, 
so  congenial  to  their  bookish  souls.  No  doubt  the 
illustrious  example  of  Richard  de  Bury  tended 
materially  to  spread  far  and  wide  the  spirit  of  bib- 
liomania. It  certainly  operated  powerfully  on  the 
monks  of  Durham,  who  not  only  by  transcribing,  but 
at  the  cost  of  considerable  sums  of  money,  greatly 
increased  their  library.  A  catalogue  of  the  collec- 
tion, taken  some  forty  years  after  the  death  of  De 
Bury,  is  preserved  to  this  day  at  Durham,  and 
shows  how  considerably  they  augmented  it  during 
a  space  of  two  hundred  years,  or  from  the  time 
when  the  former  list  was  written.  If  the  biblio- 
maniac can  obtain  a  sight  of  this  ancient  catalogue, 
he  will  dwell  over  it  with  astonishment  and  delight 
— immaculate  volumes  of   Scripture — fathers  and 


BIBLIOMANIA.  129 

classics  bespeak  its  richness  and  extent,  and  Robert 
of  Langchester,  the  librarian  who  wrote  it,  with 
pious  preference  places  first  on  the  list  the  magni- 
ficent Bible  which  bishop  Hugo  gave  them  many 
years  before.  This  rare  biblical  treasure,  then 
the  pride  and  glory  of  the  collection,  is  now  in  the 
Durham  Library  ;  but  to  look  upon  that  fair  manu- 
script will  make  the  blood  run  cold — barbarous 
desecration  has  been  committed  by  some  bibliope- 
gistical  hand ;  the  splendid  illuminations  so  rich 
and  spirited,  which  adorned  the  beauteous  tomes, 
dazzled  an  ignorant  mind,  who  cut  them  out  and 
robbed  it  of  half  its  interest  and  value. 

From  near  600  volumes  which  the  list  enumer- 
ates, I  cannot  refrain  from  naming  two  or  three. 
I  have  searched  over  its  biblical  department  in  vain 
to  discover  mention  of  the  celebrated  "  Saint  Cuth- 
bert's  Gospels."  It  is  surprising  they  should  have 
forgotten  so  rich  a  gem,  for  although  four  copies  of 
the  Gospels  appear,  not  one  of  them  answers  to  its 
description;  two  are  specified  as  '' non  glos ;"  it 
could  not  have  been  either  of  those ,  another,  the 
most  interesting  of  the  whole,  is  recorded  as  the 
venerable  Bede's  own  copy !  What  bibliophile  can 
look  unmoved  upon  those  time-honored  pages, 
without  indeed  all  the  warmth  of  his  booklove 
kindling  forth  into  a  very  frenzy  of  rapture  and 
veneration  !  So  fairly  written,  and  so  accurately 
transcribed,  it  is  one  of  the  most  precious  of  the 
many  gems  which  now  crowd  the  shelves  of  the 
Durham  Library,  and  is  well  worth  a  pilgrimage  to 
view  it.*  But  this  cannot  be  St.  Cuthbert's  Gospels, 

*  It  is  marked  A,  ii.  16,  and  described  in  the  old  MS.  catalogue 
as  De  manus  BedcB,  ii.  fol.  Baptizatus. 


BIBLIOMANIA, 

I  atnd  the  remaining  copy  is  mentioned  as  "  Quarteur 
Evangelum^'  fol.  ii."  ""  se  levantem;"  now  I  have 
looked  at  the  splendid  volume  in  the  British 
Museum,  to  see  if  the  catchword  answered  to  this 
description,  but  it  does  not ;  so  it  cannot  be  this, 
which  I  might  have  imagined  without  the  trouble 
of  a  research,  for  if  it  was,  they  surely  would  not 
have  forgotten  to  mention  its  celebrated  cooper- 
toria. 

Passing  a  splendid  array  of  Scriptures  whole 
and  in  parts,  for  there  was  no  paucity  of  sacred 
volumes  in  that  old  monkish  library,  and  fathers, 
doctors  of  the  Church,  schoolmen,  lives  of  saints, 
chronicles,  profane  writers,  philosophical  and  log- 
ical treatises,  medical  works,  grammars,  and  books 
of  devotion,  we  are  particularly  struck  with  the 
appearance  of  so  many  fine  classical  authors. 
Works  of  Virgil  (including  the  yEneid),  Pompeius 
Trogus,  Claudius,  Juvenal,  Terence,  Ovid,  Pruden- 
tius,  Quintilian,  Cicero,  Boethius,  and  a  host  of 
others  are  in  abundance,  and  form  a  catalogue  | 
rendered  doubly  exciting  to  the  bibliophile  by  the  ! 
insertion  of  an  occasional  note,  which  tells  of  its]^ 
antiquity,*  rarity,  or  value.  In  some  of  the  vol- 
umes a  curious  inscription  was  inserted,  thunder- 
ing a  curse  upon  any  who  would  dare  to  pilfer  it 
from  the  library,  and  for  so  sacrilegious  a  crime, 
calling  down  upon  them  the  maledictions  of  Saints 
Maria,  Oswald,  Cuthbert,  and  Benedictf  A  volume 

*  The  attractive  words  "  Estvetus  Liber^^  often  occur. 

t  From  a  volume  of  Thomas  Aquinas,  the  following  is  tran- 
scribed :  "  Lib.  Sti.  Cuthberti  de  Dunelm,  ex  procuratione  fratis  Rob- 
erti  de  Graystane  quem  qui  aliena  verit  maledictionem  Sanctorum 
Mariae,  Oswaldi,  Cuthberti  et  Benedicti  incurrat."  See  Surtee  pub- 
lications, vol.  i.  p.  35,  where  other  instances  are  given. 


BIBLIOMANIA,  131 

containing  the  lives  of  St.  Cuthbert,  St.  Oswald, 
and  St.  Aydani,  is  described  as  "  Liber  speciales  et 
preciosus  cum  signaculo  deaurato." 

Thomas  Langley,  who  was  chancellor  of  Eng- 
land and  bishop  of  Durham  in  the  year  1406,  col- 
lected many  choice  books,  and  left  some  of  them  to 
the  library  of  Durham  church  ;  among  them  a  copy 
of  Lyra's  Commentaries  stands  conspicuous ;  he  also 
bequeathed  a  number  of  volumes  to  many  of  his 
private  friends. 

There  are  few  monastic  libraries  whose  progress 
we  can  trace  with  so  much  satisfaction  as  the  one 
now  under  consideration,  for  we  have  another  ca- 
talogue compiled  during  the  librarianship  of  John 
Tyshbourne,  in  the  year  1416,*  in  which  many 
errors  appearing  in  the  former  ones  are  carefully 
corrected;  books  which  subsequent  to  that  time 
had  been  lost  or  stolen  are  here  accounted  for; 
many  had  been  sent  to  the  students  at  Oxford,  and 
others  have  notes  appended,  implying  to  whom  the 
volume  had  been  lent;  thus  to  a  '' Flores  Ber- 
nardi"  occurs  ''Prior  debit,  I  Kempe  Episcopi 
Londoni"  It  is,  next  to  Monk  Henry's  of  Canter- 
bury, one  of  the  best  of  all  the  monkish  catalogues 
I  have  seen ;  not  so  much  for  its  extent,  as  that 
here  and  there  it  fully  partakes  of  the  character  of 
a  catalogue  raisonni ;  for  terse  sentences  are 
affixed  to  some  of  the  more  remarkable  volumes, 
briefly  descriptive  of  their  value ;  a  circumstance 
seldom  observable  in  these  early  attempts  at 
bibliography. 

In  taking  leave  of  Durham  library,  need  I  say 

*  Surtee  publ.  vol.  i.  p.  85. 


132  BIBLIOMANIA. 

that  the  bibHomaniacs  who  flourished  there  in  the 
olden  time,  not  only  collected  their  books  with  so 
much  industry,  but  knew  well  how  to  use  them  too. 
The  reader  is  doubtless  aware  how  many  learned 
men  dwelled  in  monkish  time  within  those  ancient 
walls ;  and  if  he  is  inquisitive  about  such  things  has 
often  enjoyed  a  few  hours  of  pleasant  chat  over 
the  historic  pages  of  Symeon  of  Durham,*  Turgot 
and  Wessington,f  and  has  often  heard  of  brothers 
Lawrence,  J  Reginald,§  and  Bolton ;  but  although 
unheeded  now,  many  a  monkish  bookworm,  glory- 
ing in  the  strict  observance  of  Christian  humility, 
and  so  unknown  to  fame,  lies  buried  beneath  that 
splendid  edifice,  as  many  monuments  and  funeral 
tablets  testify  and  speak  in  high  favor  of  the  great 
men  of  Durham.  If  the  reader  should  perchance 
to  wander  near  that  place,  his  eye  will  be  attracted 
by  many  of  these  memorials  of  the  dead ;  and  a 
few  hours  spent  in  exploring  them  will  serve  to 
gain  many  additional  facts  to  his  antiquarian  lore, 
and  perhaps  even  something  better  too.  For  I 
know  not  a  more  suitable  place,  as  far  as  outward 
circumstances  are  concerned,  than  an  old  sanctuary 
of  God  to  prepare  the  mind  and  lead  it  to  think 
of  death  and  immortality.  We  read  the  names  of 
great  men  long  gone  ;  of  wealthy  worldlings,  whose 
fortunes  have  long  been  spent ;  of  ambitious  states- 

*  He  wrote  The  Chronicle  of  Durham  Monastery  in  1130. 

t  His  book  on  the  Rights  and  Privileges  of  Durham  Church  is 
in  the  Cottonian  Library,  marked  Vitellius,  A,  9. 

X  Lawrence  was  elected  prior  in  1149,  "a  man  of  singular  prud- 
ence and  learning,  as  the  many  books  he  writ  manifest."  Dugdale^s 
Monast.  vol.  i.  p.  230. 

%  Wrote  the  Life  and  Miracles  of  St.  Cuthbert,  the  original 
book  is  in  the  Durham  Library. 


BIBLIOMANIA.  133 

men  and  doughty  warriors,  whose  glory  is  fast  fad- 
ing as  their  costly  mausoleums  crumble  in  the 
hands  of  time,  and  whose  stone  tablets,  green  with 
the  lichens'  hue,  manifest  how  futile  it  is  to  hope  to 
gain  immortality  from  stone,  or  purchase  fame  by 
the  cold  marble  trophies  of  pompous  grief ;  not 
that  on  their  glassy  surface  the  truth  is  always 
faithfully  mirrored  forth,  even  when  the  thoughts 
of  holy  men  composed  the  eulogy ;  the  tombs  of  old 
knew  as  well  how  to  lie  as  now,  and  even  ascetic 
monks  could  become  too  warm  in  their  praises  of 
departed  worth ;  for  whilst  they  blamed  the  great 
man  living,  with  Christian  charity  they  thought 
only  of  his  virtues  when  they  had  nothing  but  his 
body  left,  and  murmured  long  prayers,  said  tedious 
masses,  and  kept  midnight  vigils  for  his  soul.  For 
had  he  not  shown  his  love  to  God  by  his  munifi- 
cence to  His  Church  on  earth?  Benedicite,  saith 
the  monks. 


CHAPTER  VI. 


Croyland  Monastery, — Its  Library  increased  by 
Egebric. — Destroyed  by  Fire. — Peterborough. — 
Destroyed  by  the  Danes. — Benedict  and  his  books. 
— Anecdotes  of  Collectors. — Catalogue  of  the  Li- 
brary of  the  Abbey  of  Peterborough. — Leicester 
Library^  etc. 


HE  low  marshy  fens  of  Lincoln- 
shire are  particularly  rich  in 
monastic  remains  ;  but  none  prove 
so  attractive  to  the  antiquary  as 
the  ruins  of  the  splendid  abbey  of 
Croyland.  The  pen  of  Ingulphus 
has  made  the  affairs  of  that  old 
monastery  familiar  to  us ;  he  has  told  us  of  its  pros- 
pering and  its  misfortunes,  and  we  may  learn  more- 
over from  the  pages  of  the  monk  how  many  wise 
and  virtuous  men,  of  Saxon  and  Norman  days, 
were  connected  with  this  ancient  fabric,  receiving 
education  there,  or  devoting  their  lives  to  piety 
within  its  walls.  It  was  here  that  Guthlac,  a  Saxon 
warrior,  disgusted  with  the  world,  sought  solitude 


136  BIBLIOMANIA. 

and  repose  ;  and  for  ten  long  years  he  led  a  hermit's 
life  in  that  damp  and  marshy  fen  ;  in  prayer  and  fast- 
ing, working  miracles,  and  leading  hearts  to  God, 
he  spent  his  lonely  days,  all  which  was  rewarded  by 
a  happy  and  peaceful  death,  and  a  sanctifying  of 
his  corporeal  remains — for  many  wondrous  miracles 
were  wrought  by  those  holy  relics. 

Croyland  abbey  was  founded  on  the  site  of 
Guthlac's  hermitage,  by  Ethelred,  king  of  Mercia. 
Many  years  before,  when  he  was  striving  for  the 
crown  of  that  kingdom,  his  cousin,  Crobrid,  who 
then  enjoyed  it,  pursued  him  with  unremitting 
enmity ;  and  worn  out,  spiritless  and  exhausted,  the 
royal  wanderer  sought  refuge  in  the  hermit's  cell. 
The  holy  man  comforted  him  with  every  assurance 
of  success ;  and  prophesied  that  he  would  soon  ob- 
tain his  rights  without  battle  or  without  bloodshed  ;* 
in  return  for  these  brighter  prospects,  and  these 
kind  wishes,  Ethelred  promised  to  found  a  monas- 
tery on  that  very  spot  in  honor  of  God  and  St. 
Guthlac,  which  promise  he  faithfully  fulfilled  in  the 
year  716,  and  "thus  the  wooden  oratory  was  fol- 
lowed by  a  church  of  stone."  Succeeding  benefac- 
tors endowed,  and  succeeding  abbots  enriched  it 
with  their  learning ;  and  as  years  rolled  by  so  it 
grew  and  flourished  till  it  became  great  in  wealth 
and  powerful  in  its  influence.  But  a  gloomy  day 
approached — the  Danes  destroyed  that  noble  struc- 
ture, devastating  it  by  fire,  and  besmearing  its  holy 
altars  with  the  blood  of  its  hapless  inmates.  But 
zealous  piety  and  monkish  perseverance  again 
restored   it,  with   new  and  additional  lustre ;   and 

*  Cough's  Hist.  Croyland  in  Bibl.  Top.  Brit.  xi.  p.  3. 


BIBLIOMANIA.  137 

besides  adding  to  the  splendor  of  the  edifice,  aug- 
mented its  internal  comforts  by  forming  a  library 
of  considerable  importance  and  value.  We  may 
judge  how  dearly  they  valued  a  Bibliotheca  in  those 
old  days  by  the  contribution  of  one  benevolent 
book-lover — Egebric,  the  second  abbot  of  that 
name,  a  man  whom  Ingulphus  says  was  "far  more 
devoted  to  sacred  learning  and  to  the  perusal  of 
books  than  skilled  in  secular  matters,"*  gladdened 
the  hearts  of  the  monks  with  a  handsome  library, 
consisting  of  forty  original  volumes  in  various 
branches  of  learning,  and  more  than  one  hundred 
volumes  of  different  tracts  and  histories,f  besides 
eighteen  books  for  the  use  of  the  divine  offices 
of  the  church.  Honor  to  the  monk  who,  in  the 
land  of  dearth,  could  amass  so  bountiful  a  pro- 
vision for  the  intellect  to  feed  upon  ;  and  who  en- 
couraged our  early  literature — when  feeble  and 
trembling  by  the  renewed  attacks  of  rapacious 
invaders — by  such  fostering  care. 

In  the  eleventh  century  Croyland  monastery 
was  doomed  to  fresh  misfortunes ;  a  calamitous  fire, 
accidental  in  its  origin,  laid  the  fine  monastery 
in  a  heap  of  ruins,  and  scattered  its  library  in 
blackened  ashes  to  the  winds.  J     A  sad  and  irre- 

*  Inguph.  in  Gale's  Script,  torn.  i.  p.  53. 

t  Debit  iste  Abbas  Egebricus  communi  bibliothecas  clanstralium 
monachorum  magna  volumina  diversorum  doctorum  originalia  nu- 
mero  quadraginta ;  minora  vero  volumina  de  diversas  tractatibus  at 
historiis,  quae  numerum  centenarium  excedibant."     Ingul.  p.  53. 

X  The  fire  occurred  in  109 1.  Ingulphus  relates  with  painful 
minuteness  the  progress  of  the  work  of  destruction,  and  enumerates 
all  the  rich  treasures  which  those  angry  flames  consumed.  I  should 
have  given  a  longer  account  of  this  event  had  not  the  Rev.  Mr.  Mait- 
land  ^ready  done  so  in  his  interesting  work  on  the  "  Dark  Ages" 


138  BIBLIOMANIA. 

parable  loss  was  that  to  the  Norman  monks  and 
to  the  students  of  Saxon  history  in  modern  times ; 
for  besides  four  hundred  Saxon  charters,  deeds,  etc., 
many  of  the  highest  historical  interest  and  value 
beautifully  illuminated  in  gold  (aureis  pictures) 
and  written  in  Saxon  characters,*  the  whole  of 
the  choice  and  ample  library  was  burnt,  containing 
seven  hundred  volumes,  besides  the  books  of  divine 
offices — the  Antiphons  and  Grailes.  I  will  not 
agonize  the  bibliophile  by  expatiating  further  on 
the  sad  work  of  destruction ;  but  is  he  not  some- 
what surprised  that  in  those  bookless  days  seven 
hundred  volumes  should  have  been  amassed  to- 
gether, besides  a  lot  of  church  books  and  Saxon 
times  ? 

Ingulphus,  who  has  so  graphically  described  the 
destruction  of  Croyland  monastery  by  the  Danes 
in  870,  has  also  given  the  particulars  of  their  pro- 
ceedings at  the  monastery  of  Peterborough,  an- 
ciently called  Madeshamsted,  to  which  they  im- 
mediately afterwards  bent  their  steps.  The  monks, 
on  hearing  of  their  approach,  took  the  precaution 
to  guard  the  monastery  by  all  the  means  in  their 
power ;  but  the  quiet  habits  of  monastic  life  were 
ill  suited  to  inspire  them  with  a  warlike  spirit,  and 
after  a  feeble  resistance,  their  cruel  enemies  (whom 
the  monks  speak  of  in  no  gentle  terms,  as  the 
reader  may  imagine),  soon  effected  an  entrance ; 
in  the  contest  however  Tulla,  the  brother  of 
Hulda,  the  Danish  leader,  was  slain  by  a  stone 
thrown  by  one  of  the  monks  from  the  walls ;  this 
tended  to  kindle  the    fury  of   the   besiegers,  and 

•  Gale's  Remin.  Ang.  Scrip,  i.  p.  98. 


BIBLIOMANIA,  139 

so  exasperated  Hulda  that  it  is  said  he  killed  with 
his  own  hand  the  whole  of  the  poor  defenceless 
monks,  including  their  venerable  abbot.  The  sacred 
edifice,  completely  in  their  hands,  was  soon  laid 
waste ;  they  broke  down  the  altars,  destroyed  the 
monuments,  and — much  will  the  bibliophile  deplore 
it — set  fire  to  their  immense  library  "  ingens  bib- 
liotheca^'  maliciously  tearing  into  pieces  all  their 
valuable  and  numerous  charters,  evidences,  and 
writings.  The  monastery,  says  the  historian,  con- 
tinued burning  for  fifteen  days.*  This  seat  of  Saxon 
learning  was  left  buried  in  its  ruins  for  near  one 
hundred  years,  when  Athelwold,  bishop  of  Winches- 
ter, in  the  year  966,  restored  it ;  but  in  the  course 
of  time,  after  a  century  of  peaceful  repose,  fresh 
troubles  sprang  up.  When  Turoldus,  a  Norman, 
who  had  been  appointed  by  William  the  Conqueror, 
was  abbot,  the  Danes  again  paid  them  a  visit  of 
destruction.  Hareward  de  Wake  having  joined  a 
Danish  force,  proceeded  to  the  town  of  Peter- 
borough ;  fortunately  the  monks  obtained  some 
intelligence  of  their  coming,  which  gave  Turoldus 
time  to  repair  to  Stamford  with  his  retinue.  Taurus, 
the  Sacrist,  also  managed  to  get  away,  carrying  with 
him  some  of  their  treasures,  and  among  them  a 
text  of  the  Gospels,  which  he  conveyed  to  his  su- 
perior at  Stamford,  and  by  that  means  preserved 
them.  On  the  arrival  of  the  Danes,  the  remain- 
ing monks  were  prepared  to  offer  a  somewhat  stern 
resistance,  but  without  effect ;  for  setting  fire  to  the 
buildings,  the  Danes  entered  through  the  flames 
and  smoke,  and  pillaged  the  monastery  of  all  its 
*  Ingulph.  ap.  Gale  i.  p.  25. 


140  BIBLIOMANIA. 

valuable  contents ;  and  that  which  they  could  not 
carry  away,  they  destroyed :  not  even  sparing  the 
shrines  of  holy  saints,  or  the  miracle-working  dust 
contained  therein.  The  monks  possessed  a  great 
cross  of  a  most  costly  nature,  which  the  invaders 
endeavored  to  take  away,  but  could  not  on  ac- 
count of  its  weight  and  size ;  however,  they  broke 
off  the  gold  crown  from  the  head  of  the  crucifix, 
and  the  footstool  under  its  feet,  which  was  made  of 
pure  gold  and  gems ;  they  also  carried  away  two 
golden  biers,  on  which  the  monks  carried  the  relics 
of  their  saints  ;  with  nine  silver  ones.  There  was 
certainly  no  monachal  poverty  here,  for  their 
wealth  must  have  been  profuse ;  besides  the  above 
treasures,  they  took  twelve  crosses,  made  of  gold 
and  silver  ;  they  also  went  up  to  the  tower  and 
took  away  a  table  of  large  size  and  value,  which 
the  monks  had  hid  there,  trusting  it  might  escape 
their  search  ;  it  was  a  splendid  affair,  made  of  gold 
and  silver  and  precious  stones,  and  was  usually 
placed  before  the  altar.  But  besides  all  this,  they 
robbed  them  of  that  which  those  poor  monkish  bi- 
bliophiles loved  more  than  all.  Their  library,  which 
they  had  collected  with  much  care,  and  which  con- 
tained many  volumes,  was  carried  away,  "with 
many  other  precious  things,  the  like  of  which  were 
not  to  be  found  in  all  England."*  The  abbot  and 
those  monks  who  fortunately  escaped,  afterwards 
returned,  sad  and  sorrowful  no  doubt ;  but  trusting 
in  their  Divine  Master  and  patron  Saint,  they  ulti- 
mately succeeded  in  making  their  old  house  habit- 
able again,  and  well  fortified  it  with  a  strong  wall, 
*  See  Gunter's  Peterborough,  suppl.  263. 


BIBLIOMANIA.  141 

so  that  formerly  it  used  to  be  remarked  that  this 
building  looked  more  like  a  military  establishment 
than  a  house  of  God. 

Eminently  productive  was  the  monastery  of 
Peterborough  in  Saxon  bibliomaniacs.  Its  ancient 
annals  prove  how  enthusiastically  they  collected 
and  transcribed  books.  There  were  few  indeed  of 
its  abbots  who  did  not  help  in  some  way  or  other 
to  increase  their  library.  Kenulfus,  who  was  abbot 
in  the  year  992,  was  a  learned  and  eloquent  student 
in  divine  and  secular  learning.  He  much  improved 
his  monastery,  and  greatly  added  to  its  literary 
treasures.*  But  the  benefactors  of  this  place  are 
too  numerous  to  be  minutely  specified  here.  Hugo 
Candidus  tells  us,  that  Kinfernus,  Archbishop  of 
York,  in  1056,  gave  them  many  valuable  orna- 
ments ;  and  among  them  a  fine  copy  of  the  Gospels, 
beautifully  adorned  with  gold.  This  puts  us  in 
mind  of  Leofricus,  a  monk  of  the  abbey,  who  was 
made  abbot  in  the  year  1057.  He  is  said  to  have 
been  related  to  the  royal  family,  a  circumstance 
which  may  account  for  his  great  riches.  He  was  a 
sad  pluralist,  and  held  at  one  time  no  less  than  five 
monasteries,  viz.  Burton,  Coventy,  Croyland, 
Thorney,  and  Peterborough.f  He  gave  to  the 
church  of  Peterborough  many  and  valuable  uten- 
sils of  gold,  silver,  and  precious  stones,  and  a  copy 
of  the  Gospels  bound  in  gold.J 

*  Hugo  Candid,  p.  31 ;  Tamer  Bib.  Brit,  et  Hib.  p.  175.  Can- 
didus says,  "  Flos  literaris  disciplina,  torrens  eloquentiae,  decus  tt 
norma  rerum  divinarum  et  secularium." 

t  Hugo  Candid,  ap.  Sparke,  Hist.  Ang.  Scrip,  p.  41.  Gunter's 
Peterboro,  p.  15,  ed.  1686. 

X  Hugo  Candid,  p.  42. 


142  BIBLIOMANIA. 

But  in  all  lights,  whether  regarded  as  an  author 
or  a  bibliophile,  great  indeed  was  Benedict,  formerly 
prior  of  Canterbury,  and  secretary  to  Thomas  a 
Becket,*  of  whom  it  is  supposed  he  wrote  a  life. 
He  was  made  abbot  of  Peterborough  in  the  year 
1 1 77;  he  compiled  a  history  of  Henry  H.  and  king 
Richard  I.;f  he  is  spoken  of  in  the  highest  terms 
of  praise  by  Robert  Swapham  for  his  profound 
wisdom  and  great  erudition  in  secular  matters.  J 
There  can  be  no  doubt  of  his  book-loving  passion ; 
for  during  the  time  he  was  abbot  he  transcribed 
himself,  and  ordered  others  to  transcribe,  a  great 
number  of  books.  Swapham  has  preserved  a  cata- 
logue of  them,  which  is  so  interesting  that  I  have 
transcribed  it  entire.     The  list  is  entitled  : 

DE   LIBRIS   EJUS. 

Plurimos  quoque  Hbros  3  scribere  fecit,  quorum  nomina  sub- 
notantur. 

Vetus  et  Novum  Testamentum  in  uno  volumine. 

Vetus  et  Novum  Testamentum  in  4  volumina. 

Quinque  libri  Moysi  glosati  in  uno  volumine. 

Sexdecim  Prophetae  glosati  in  uno  volumine. 

Duodecim  minores  glosati  Prophetae  in  uno  volumine. 

Liber  Regum  glosatus,  paralipomenon  glosatus.  Job,  Para- 
bolas Solomonis  et  Ecclesiastes,  Cantica  Canticorum  glosati  in 
uno  volumine. 

Liber  Ecclesiasticus  et  Liber  Sapientiae  glosatus  in  uno  volu- 
mine. 

Tobyas,  Judith,  Ester  et  Esdras,  glosati  in  uno  volumine. 

Liber  Judicum  glosatus. 

Scholastica  hystoria. 

•  Leland  de  Scrip.  Brit.  p.  217. 

f  Published  by  Hearne,  2  vol.  8vo.  Oxon.  1735. 

X  Rt.  Swap,  ap,  Sparke,  p.  97.  "  Erat.  enin  literarum  scientiae 
satis  imbutus ;  regulari  disciplina  optima  instructus ;  sapientia  secu- 
lari  plenissime  eruditus. 


BIBLIOMANIA.  143 

Psalterium  glosatum. 

Item  non  glosatum. 

Item  Psalterium. 

Quatuor  Evangelia  glosata  in  uno  volumine. 

Item  Mathaeus  et  Marcus  in  uno  volumine. 

Johannes  et  Lucas  in  uno  volumine. 

Epistolae  Pauli  glosatae  Apocalypsis  et  Epistolae  Canonicae 
glosata  in  uno  volumine. 

Sententiae  Petri  Lombardi. 

Item  Sententiae  ejusdem. 

Sermones  Bernardi  Abbatis  Clarevallensis. 

Decreta  Gratiani. 

Item  Decreta  Gratiani. 

Summa  Ruffini  de  Decretis. 

Summa  Johannes  Fuguntini  de  Decretis. 

Decretales  Epistolae. 

Item  Decretales  Epistolae. 

Item  Decretales  Epistolae  cum  summa  sic  incipiente;  Olim. 
Institutiones  Justiniani  cum  autenticis  et  Infortiatio  Digestum 
vetus. 

Tres  partes  cum  digesto  novo. 

Summa  Placentini. 

Totum  Corpus  Juris  in  duobus  voluminibus. 

Arismetica. 

Epistolae  Senecae  cum  aliis  Senecis  in  uno  volumine. 

Martialis  totus  et  Terentius  in  uno  volumine. 

Morale  dogma  philosophorum. 

Gesta  Alexandri  et  Liber  Claudii  et  Claudiani. 

Summa  Petri  Heylae  de  Grammatica,  cum  multis  allis  rebus 
in  uno  volumine. 

Gesta  Regis  Henrica  secunda  et  Genealogiae  ejus. 

Interpretatione  Hebraicorum  nominum. 

Libellus  de  incamatione  verbi.  Liber  Bernardi  Abbatis  ad 
Eugenium  papam. 

Missale. 

Vitae  Sancti  Thomae  Martyris.* 

Miracula  ejusdem  in  quinque  voluminibus. 

Liber  Richardi  Plutonis,  qui  dicitur,  unde  Malum  Meditationes 
Anselmi. 

*  Swapham  calls  this  "Egregium  volumen,"  p.  98. 


144  BIBLIOMANIA. 

Practica  Bartholomaei  cum  multis  allis  rebus  in  uno  volumine. 
Ars  Physicae  Pantegni,  et  practica  ipsius  in  uno  volumine. 
Almazor  et  Diascoridis  de  virtutibus  herbarum. 
Liber  Dinamidiorum  et  aliorum  multorum  in  uno  volumine. 
Libellus  de  Compoto. 

Sixty  volumes !  perhaps  containing  near  loo 
separate  works,  and  all  added  to  the  library  in  the 
time  of  one  abbot ;  surely  this  is  enough  to  contro- 
vert the  opinion  that  the  monks  cared  nothing  for 
books  or  learning,  and  let  not  the  Justin,  Seneca, 
Martial,  Terence,  and  Claudian  escape  the  eye  of 
the  reader,  those  monkish  bookworms  did  care  a 
little,  it  would  appear,  for  classical  literature.  But 
what  will  he  say  to  the  fine  Bibles  that  crown  and 
adorn  the  list  ?  The  two  complete  copies  of  the 
Vetus  et  Novum  Testamentum,  and  the  many 
glossed  portions  of  the  sacred  writ,  reflect  honor 
upon  the  Christian  monk,  and  placed  him  conspicu- 
ously among  the  bible  students  of  the  middle 
ages ;  proving  too,  that  while  he  could  esteem  the 
wisdom  of  Seneca,  and  the  vivacity  of  Terence,  and 
feel  a  deep  interest  in  the  secular  history  of  his  own 
times,  he  did  not  lose  sight  of  the  fountain  of  all 
knowledge,  but  gave  to  the  Bible  his  first  care,  and 
the  most  prominent  place  on  his  library  shelf.  Be- 
sides the  books  which  the  abbots  collected  for  the 
monastery,  they  often  possessed  a  private  selection 
for  their  own  use ;  there  are  instances  in  which 
these  collections  were  of  great  extent ;  some  of 
which  we  shall  notice,  but  generally  speaking  they 
seldom  numbered  many  volumes.  Thus  Robert  of 
Lyndeshye,  who  was  abbot  of  Peterborough  in 
1 2 14,  only  possessed  six  volumes,  which  were  such 


BIBLIOMANIA.  145 

as  he  constantly  required  for  reference  or  devotion  ; 
they  consisted  of  a  Numerale  Majestri  W.  de  Mon- 
tibus  cum  alliis  rebus ;  Tropi  Majestri  Petri  cum 
diversis  summis ;  Sententise  Petri  Pretanensis ; 
Psalterium  Glossatum ;  Aurora;  Psalterium;*  His- 
toriale.  These  were  books  continually  in  requisi- 
tion, and  which  he  possessed  to  save  the  trouble  of 
constantly  referring  to  the  library.  His  succes- 
sor, abbot  Holdernesse,  possessed  also  twelve  vol- 
umes,f  and  Walter  of  St.  Edmundsbury  Abbot,  in 
1233,  had  eighteen  books,  and  among  them  a  fine 
copy  of  the  Bible  for  his  private  study.  Robert  of 
Sutton  in  1262,  also  abbot  of  Peterborough,  pos- 
sessed a  similar  number,  containing  a  copy  of  the 
Liber  Naturalium  Anstotelis ;  and  his  successor, 
Richard  of  London,  among  ten  books  which  formed 
his  private  library,  had  the  Consolation  of  Philos- 
ophy, a  great  favorite  in  the  monasteries.  In  the 
year  1295  William  of  Wodeforde,  collected  twenty 
volumes,  but  less  than  that  number  constituted  the 
library  of  Adam  de  Botheby,  who  was  abbot  of 
Peterborough  many  years  afterwards,  but  among 
them  I  notice  a  Seneca,  with  thirty-six  others  con- 
tained in  the  same  volume.  J 

Abbot  Godfrey,  elected  in  the  year  1 299,  was  a 
great  benefactor  to  the  church,  as  we  learn  from 
Walter  de  Whytlesse,  who  gives  a  long  list  of  do- 
nations made  by  him ;  among  a  vast  quantity  of 
valuables,  "he  gave  to  the  church  two  Bibles,  one 
of  which  was  written  in  France,"  with  about  twenty 

♦  Now  preserved  in  the  library  of  the  Society  of  Antiquaries, 
t  Gunter,  Peterborough,  p.  29. 
X  Ibid,  p.  37. 


146  BIBLIOMANIA. 

other  volumes.  In  the  war  which  occurred  during 
his  abbacy,  between  John  BaHol  of  Scotland  and 
Edward  I.  of  England,  the  Scots  applied  to  the 
pope  for  his  aid  and  council ;  his  holiness  deemed 
it  his  province  to  interfere,  and  directed  letters  to 
the  king  of  England,  asserting  that  the  kingdom  of 
Scotland  appertained  to  the  Church  of  Rome ;  in 
these  letters  he  attempt  to  prove  that  it  was 
opposed  to  justice,  and,  what  he  deemed  of  still 
greater  importance,  to  the  interests  of  the  holy  see, 
that  the  king  of  England  should  not  have  dominion 
over  the  kingdom  of  Scotland.  The  pope's  mes- 
sengers on  this  occasion  were  received  by  abbot 
Godfrey ;  Walter  says  that  "He  honorably  re- 
ceived two  cardinals  at  Peterborough  with  their  re- 
tinues, who  were  sent  by  the  pope  to  make  peace 
between  the  English  and  the  Scotch,  and  besides 
cheerfully  entertaining  them  with  food  and  drink, 
gave  them  divers  presents ;  to  one  of  the  cardinals, 
named  Gaucelin,  he  gave  a  certain  psalter,  beauti- 
fully written  in  letters  of  gold  and  purple,  and 
marvellously  illuminated.  Uteris  aureis  et  assuris 
scriptufn  et  vtirabiliter  luminatum.*  I  give  this 
anecdote  to  show  how  splendidly  the  monks  inscribed 
those  volumes  designed  for  the  service  of  the  holy 
church.  I  ought  to  have  mentioned  before  that 
Wulstan,  archbishop  of  York,  gave  many  rare  and 
precious  ornaments  to  Peterborough,  nor  should  I 
omit  a  curious  little  book  anecdote  related  of  him. 
He  was  born  at  Jceritune  in  Warwickshire,  and  was 
sent  by  his  parents  to  Evesham,  and  afterwards  to 
Peterborough,  where  he  gave  great  indications  of 
•  Walter  de  Whytlesse  apud  Sparke,  p.  173. 


BIBLIOMANIA.  147 

learning.  His  schoolmaster,  who  was  an  Anglo- 
Saxon  named  Erventus,  was  a  clever  calligraphist, 
and  is  said  to  have  been  highly  proficient  in  the  art 
of  illuminating;  he  instructed  Wulstan  in  these 
accomplishments,  who  wrote  under  his  direction  a 
sacramentary  and  a  psalter,  and  illuminated  the 
capitals  with  many  pictures  painted  in  gold  and 
colors  ;  they  were  executed  with  so  much  taste 
that  his  master  presented  the  sacramentary  to 
Canute,  and  the  psalter  to  his  queen.* 

From  these  few  facts  relative  to  Peterborough 
Monastery,  the  reader  will  readily  perceive  how 
earnestly  books  were  collected  by  the  monks  there, 
and  will  be  somewhat  prepared  to  learn  that  a 
catalogue  of  1,680  volumes  is  preserved,  which 
formerly  constituted  the  library  of  that  fraternity 
of  bibliophiles.  This  fine  old  catalogue,  printed 
by  Gunton  in  his  history  of  the  abbey,  covers 
fifty  folio  pages;  it  presents  a  faithful  mirror  of 
the  literature  of  its  day,  and  speaks  well  for  the 
bibliomanical  spirit  of  the  monks  of  Peterborough. 
Volumes  of  patristic  eloquence  and  pious  erudition 
crowd  the  list ;  chronicles,  poetry,  and  philosophical 
treatises  are  mingled  with  the  titles  of  an  abundant 
collection  of  classic  works,  full  of  the  lore  of  the 
ancient  world.  Although  the  names  may  be  similar 
to  those  which  I  have  extracted  from  other  cat- 
alogues, I  must  not  omit  to  give  a  few  of  them ; 
I  find  works  of — 


Augustine. 

Cassiodorus. 

Seneca. 

Ambrose. 

Gregory. 

Prosper. 

Albinus. 

Cyprian. 

TuUy. 

*  Gunter's  Hist,  of  Peterborough,  p.  259. 


148 


BIBLIOMANIA. 


Bede. 

Bernard. 

Socrates. 

Basil. 

Anselm. 

Ovid. 

Lanfranc. 

Alcuinus. 

Priscian. 

Chrysostom. 
Jerome. 

Honorius. 
Donatus. 

Hippocrates. 
Horace. 

Eusebius. 

Macer. 

Sedulus. 

Boethius. 

Persius. 

Theodulus. 

Isidore. 

Virgil. 

Sallust. 

Origin. 

Dionysius. 

Cassian. 

Isagoge  of  Porphry. 

Aristotle. 

Entyci  Grammatica 

Macrobius. 

Cato. 

Prudentius. 

But  although  they  possessed  these  fine  authors 
and  many  others  equally  choice,  I  am  not  able 
to  say  much  for  the  biblical  department  of  their 
library,  I  should  have  anticipated  a  goodly  store  of 
the  Holy  Scriptures,  but  in  these  necessary  volumes 
they  were  unusually  poor.  But  I  suspect  the  cat- 
alogue to  have  been  compiled  during  the  fifteenth 
century,  and  I  fear  too,  that  in  that  age  the  monks 
were  growing  careless  of  Scripture  reading,  or  at 
least  relaxing  somewhat  in  the  diligence  of  their 
studies ;  perhaps  they  devoured  the  attractive  pages 
of  Ovid,  and  loved  to  read  his  amorous  tales  more 
than  became  the  holiness  of  their  priestly  calling.* 
At  any  rate  we  may  observe  a  marked  change  as 
regards  the  prevalence  of  the  Bible  in  monastic 
libraries  between  the  twelfth  and  the  fifteenth 
century.  It  is  true  we  often  find  them  in  those  of 
the  later  age ;  but  sometimes  they  are  entirely 
without,  and  frequently  only  in  detached  portions.f 

*  At  any  rate,  we  find  about  thirty  volumes  of  Ovid's  works 
enumerated,  and  several  copies  of  '*  de  Arte  Amandi,"  and  "de 
Remedis  Amoris." 

t  Let  the  reader  examine  Leland's  Collect.,  and  the  Catalogues 
printed  in  Hunter's  Tract  on  Monastic  Libraries.     See  also  Catalogue 


BIBLIOMANIA.  149 

I  may  illustrate  this  by  a  reference  to  the  library  of 
the  Abbey  of  St.  Mary  de  la  Pre  at  Leicester,  which 
gloried  in  a  collection  of  600  volumes,  of  the  choicest 
and  almost  venerable  writers.  It  was  written  in  the 
year  1477,  by  William  Chartye,*  prior  of  the  abbey, 
and  an  old  defective  and  worn  out  Bible,  Biblie 
defect  et  usit,  with  some  detached  portions,  was  all 
that  fine  library  contained  of  the  Sacred  Writ. 
The  bible  defect  et  usit  speaks  volumes  to  the  praise 
of  the  ancient  monks  of  that  house,  for  it  was  by 
their  constant  reading  and  study,  that  it  had  become 
so  thumbed  and  worn ;  but  it  stamps  with  disgrace 
the  affluent  monks  of  the  fifteenth  century,  who, 
while  they  could  afford  to  buy,  in  the  year  i47o,f 
some  thirty  volumes  with  a  Seneca,  Ovid,  Claudian, 
Macrobius,  ^sop,  etc.,  among  them,  and  who  found 
time  to  transcribe  twice  as  many  more,  thought  not 
of  restoring  their  bible  tomes,  or  adding  one  book 
of  the  Holy  Scripture  to  their  crowded  shelves. 
But  alas !  monachal  piety  was  waxing  cool  and 
indifferent  then,  and  it  is  rare  to  find  the  honorable 
title  of  an  Amator  Scrip tur arum  affixed  to  a 
monkish  name  in  the  latter  part  of  the  fifteenth 
century. 

of  Canterbury  Library,  MS.  Cottonian  Julius,  c.  iv.  4.,  in  the  British 
Museum. 

*  Printed  by  Nichols,  in  Appendix  to  Hist,  of  Leicester,  from  a 
MS.  Register.  It  contains  almost  as  fine  a  collection  of  the  classics 
and  fathers  as  that  at  Peterborough,  just  noticed,  Aristotle,  Virgil, 
Plato,  Ovid,  Cicero,  Euclid,  Socrates,  Horace,  Lucan,  Seneca,  etc,  etc. 
are  among  them,  pp.  loi  to  108.  It  is  curious  that  Leland  mentions 
only  six  MSS.  as  forming  the  library  at  the  time  he  visited  the  Abbey 
of  Leicester,  all  its  fine  old  volumes  were  gone.  He  only  arrived  in 
time  to  pick  up  the  crumbs. 

t  At  least  during  the  time  of  William  Charteys  priorship.  See 
Nichols,  p.  108. 


CHAPTER   VII. 


King  Alfred  an  ''amator  librorum  "  and  an  author. 


HE  latter  part  of  the  tenth  century 
was  a  most  memorable  period  in 
the  annals  of  monkish  biblio- 
mania, and  gave  birth  to  one  of 
the  brightest  scholars  that  ever 
shone  in  the  dark  days  of  our 
Saxon  forefathers.  King  Alfred, 
in  honor  of  whose  talents  posterity  have  gratefully 
designated  the  Great,  spread  a  fostering  care  over 
the  feeble  remnant  of  native  literature  which  the 
Danes  in  their  cruel  depredations  had  left  unmo- 
lested. The  noble  aspirations  of  this  royal  student 
and  patron  of  learning  had  been  instilled  into  his 
mind  by  the  tender  care  of  a  fond  parent.  It  was 
from  the  pages  of  a  richly  illuminated  little  volume 
of  Saxon  poetry,  given  to  him  by  the  queen  as  a 
reward  for  the  facility  with  which  he  had  mastered 
its  contents,  that  he  first  derived  that  intense  love 
of   books  which    never   forsook   him,  though   the 


152  BIBLIOMANIA. 

sterner  duties  of  his  after  position  frequently 
required  his  thoughts  and  energies  in  another 
channel.  Having  made  himself  acquainted  with 
this  little  volume,  Alfred  found  a  thirst  for  know- 
ledge grow  upon  him,  and  applied  his  youthful 
mind  to  study  with  the  most  zealous  ardor;  but 
his  progress  was  considerably  retarded,  because  he 
could  not,  at  that  time,  find  a  Grammaticus  capable 
of  instructing  him,*  although  he  searched  the  king- 
dom of  the  West  Saxons.  Yet  he  soon  acquired 
the  full  knowledge  of  his  own  language,  and  the 
Latin  it  is  said  he  knew  as  well,  and  was  able  to 
use  with  a  fluency  equal  to  his  native  tongue ;  he 
could  comprehend  the  meaning  of  the  Greek, 
although  perhaps  he  was  incapable  of  using  it  to 
advantage.  He  was  so  passionately  fond  of  books, 
and  so  devoted  to  reading,  that  he  constantly 
carried  about  him  some  favorite  volume  which,  as 
a  spare  moment  occurred,  he  perused  with  the 
avidity  of  an  helluo  librorum.  This  pleasing  anec- 
dote related  by  Asserf  is  characteristic  of  his 
natural  perseverance. 

When  he  ascended  the  throne,  he  lavished 
abundant  favors  upon  all  who  were  eminent  for 
their  literary  acquirements  ;  and  displayed  in  their 
distribution  the  utmost  liberality  and  descrimina- 
tion.  Asser,  who  afterwards  became  his  biog- 
rapher, was  during  his  life  the  companion  and 
associate  of  his  studies,  and  it  is  from  his  pen  we 

•  Flor.  Vigorn.  sub.  anno.  871.  Brompton's  Chron.  in  Alferi, 
p.  814. 

t  Asser  de  Alfredi  Gestis.,  Edit.  Camden  i.  p.  5.  William 
Malmsbury,  b.  ii.  c.  iv. 


BIBLIOMANIA.  153 

learn  that,  when  an  interval  occurred  inoccupied  by 
his  princely  duties,  Alfred  stole  into  the  quietude  of 
his  study  to  seek  comfort  and  instruction  from  the 
pages  of  those  choice  volumes,  which  comprised 
his  library.  But  Alfred  was  not  a  mere  bookworm, 
a  devourer  of  knowledge  without  purpose  or  without 
meditation  of  his  own,  he  thought  with  a  student's 
soul  well  and  deeply  upon  what  he  read,  and  drew 
from  his  books  those  principles  of  philanthropy,  and 
those  high  resolves,  which  did  such  honor  to  the 
Saxon  monarch.  He  viewed  with  sorrow  the 
degradation  of  his  country,  and  the  intellectual 
barrenness  of  his  time ;  the  warmest  aspiration  of 
his  soul  was  to  diffuse  among  his  people  a  love  for 
literature  and  science,  to  raise  them  above  their 
Saxon  sloth,  and  lead  them  to  think  of  loftier 
matters  than  war  and  carnage.  To  effect  this 
noble  aim,  the  highest  to  which  the  talents  of  a 
monarch  can  be  applied,  he  for  a  length  of  time 
devoted  his  mind  to  the  translation  of  Latin  authors 
into  the  vernacular  tongue.  In  his  preface  to  the 
Pastoral  of  Gregory  which  he  translated,  he  laments 
the  destruction  of  the  old  monastic  libraries  by  the 
Danes.  "I  saw,"  he  writes,  "before  alle  were 
spoiled  and  burnt,  how  the  churches  throughout 
Britain  were  filled  with  treasures  and  books,"* 
which  must  have  presented  a  striking  contrast  to 
the  illiterate  darkness  which  he  tells  us  afterwards 
spread  over  his  dominions,  for  there  were  then 
very  few  paucissimi  who  could  translate  a  Latin 
epistle  into  the  Saxon  language. 

When  Alfred  had  completed  the  translation  of 

*  Preface  to  Pastoral. 


1 54  BIBLIOMA  NIA . 

Gregory's  Pastoral,  he  sent  a  copy  to  each  of  his 
bishops  accompanied  with  a  golden  stylus  or  pen,* 
thus  conveying  to  them  the  hint  that  it  was  their 
duty  to  use  it  in  the  service  of  piety  and  learning. 
Encouraged  by  the  favorable  impression  which 
this  work  immediately  caused,  he  spared  no  pains 
to  follow  up  the  good  design,  but  patiently  applied 
himself  to  the  translation  of  other  valuable  books 
which  he  rendered  into  as  pleasing  and  expressive  a 
version  as  the  language  of  those  rude  times  per- 
mitted. Besides  these  literary  labors  he  also  wrote 
many  original  volumes,  and  became  a  powerful 
orator,  a  learned  grammarian,  an  acute  philosopher, 
a  profound  mathematician,  and  the  prince  of 
Saxon  poesy ;  with  these  exalted  talents  he  united 
those  of  an  historian,  an  architect,  and  an  accom- 
plished musician.  A  copious  list  of  his  productions, 
the  length  of  which  proves  the  fertility  of  his  pen, 
will  be  found  in  the  Biographica  Britannica,f  but 
names  of   others   not  there    enumerated   may   be 

•  Much  controversy  has  arisen  as  to  the  precise  meaning  of  this 
word.  Hearne  renders  this  passage  "with  certain  macussus  or 
marks  of  gold  the  purest  of  his  coin,"  which  has  led  some  to  suppose 
gold  coinage  was  known  among  the  Saxons.  William  of  Malms- 
bury  calls  it  a  golden  style  in  which  was  a  maucus  of  gold.  "In 
Alfred's  Preface  it  is  called  an  ^stel  of  fifty  macuses.  —  V.  Asser  a 
Wise,  86  to  175 ;  but  the  meaning  of  that  word  is  uncertain.  The 
stylus  properly  speaking  was  a  small  instrument  formerly  used  for 
writing  on  waxen  tablets,  and  made  of  iron  or  bone,  see  Archcsologia, 
vol.  ii.  p.  75.  But  waxen  tablets  were  out  of  use  in  Alfred's  time. 
The  .^stel  or  style  was  most  probably  an  instrument  used  by  the 
scribes  of  the  monasteries,  if  it  was  not  actually  a  pen.  I  am  more 
strongly  disposed  to  consider  it  so  by  the  evidence  of  an  ancient  MS. 
illumination  of  Eadwine,  a  monk  of  Canterbury,  in  Trinity  Coll. 
Camb.;  at  the  end  of  this  MS.  the  scribe  is  represented  with  a  metal 
pen  in  his  hand. 

t  Vol.  i.  pp.  54,  55. 


BIBLIOMANIA.  155 

found  in  monkish  chronicles ;  of  his  Manual,  which 
was  in  existence  in  the  time  of  William  of  Malms- 
bury,  not  a  fragment  has  been  found.  The  last  of 
his  labors  was  probably  an  attempt  to  render  the 
psalms  into  the  common  language,  and  so  unfold 
that  portion  of  the  Holy  Scriptures  to  our  Saxon 
ancestors. 

Alfred,  with  the  assistance  of  the  many  learned 
men  whom  he  had  called  to  his  court,  restored  the 
monasteries  and  schools  of  learning  which  the 
Danes  had  desecrated,  and  it  is  said  founded  the 
university  of  Oxford,  where  he  built  three  halls,  in 
the  name  of  the  Holy  Trinity  ;  for  the  doctors  of 
divinity,  philosophy,  and  grammar.  The  contro- 
versy which  this  subject  has  given  rise  to  among 
the  learned  is  too  long  to  enter  into  here,  although 
the  matter  is  one  of  great  interest  to  the  scholar 
and  to  the  antiquary. 

In  the  year  901,  this  royal  bibliophile,  "the 
victorious  prince,  the  studious  provider  for  widows, 
orphanes,  and  poore  people,  most  perfect  in  Saxon 
poetrie,  most  liberall  endowed  with  wisdome,  for- 
titude, justice,  and  temperance,  departed  this  life  ;"* 
and  right  well  did  he  deserve  this  eulogy,  for  as  an 
old  chronicle  says,  he  was  "a  goode  clerke  and 
rote  many  bokes,  and  a  boke  he  made  in  Englysshe, 
of  adventures  of  kynges  and  bataylles  that  had 
bene  wne  in  the  lande  ;  and  other  bokes  of  gestes 
he  them  wryte,  that  were  of  greate  wisdome,  and 
of  good  learnynge,  thrugh  whych  bokes  many  a 
man  may  him  amende,  that  well  them  rede,  and 

•  Stowe's  Annals,  4to.  161 5,  p.  105. 


156 


BIBLIOMANIA. 


upon  them  loke.     And  thys  kynge  Allured  lyeth 
at  Wynchestre."* 

*  Cronycle  of  Englonde  with  the  Fruyte  of  Tymes,  4to.  1515. 


CHAPTER   VIII. 


Benedict  Biscop  and  his  book  tours. — Bede. — Ceol- 
frid. —  Wilfrid. — Boniface  the  Saxon  Missionary 
— His  love  of  books. — Egbert  of  York. — Alcuin. 
—  Whitby  Abbey.  —  Ccedmon. —  Classics  in  the 
Library  of  Withby. — Rievall  Library. — Coven- 
try.—  Worcester. — Evesham. —  Thomas  of  Marle- 
berg,  etc. 

HE  venerable  Bede  enables  us  to 
show  that  in  the  early  Saxon  days 
the  monasteries  of  Wearmouth 
and  J  arrow  possessed  considerable 
collections  of  books.  Benedict 
Biscop,  the  most  enthusiastic  bib- 
liomaniac of  the  age,  founded  the 
monastery  of  Wearmouth  in  the  year  674,  in  honor 
of  the  "  Most  Holy  Prince  of  the  Apostles."  His 
whole  soul  was  in  the  work,  he  spared  neither  pains 
or  expense  to  obtain  artists  of  well  known  and 
reputed  talent  to  decorate  the  holy  edifice  ;  not  find- 
ing them  at  home,  he  journeyed  to  Gaul  in  search 
of  them,  and  returned  accompanied  by  numerous 
expert  and  ingenious  workmen.    Within  a  year  the 


158  BIBLIOMANIA. 

building  was  sufficiently  advanced  to  enable  the 
monks  to  celebrate  divine  service  there.  He 
introduced  glass  windows  and  other  ornaments  into 
his  church,  and  furnished  it  with  numerous  books 
of  all  descriptions,  innumerabilem  librorum  omnis 
generis.  Benedict  was  so  passionately  fond  of 
books  that  he  took  five  journeys  to  Rome  for  the 
purpose  of  collecting  them.  In  his  third  voyage 
he  gathered  together  a  large  quantity  on  divine 
erudition  ;  some  of  these  he  bought,  or  received 
them  as  presents  from  his  friends,  vel  amicorum 
dono  largitos  retulit.  When  he  arrived  at  Vienne 
on  his  way  home,  he  collected  others  which  he  had 
commissioned  his  friends  to  purchase  for  him.* 
After  the  completion  of  his  monastery  he  under- 
took his  fourth  journey  to  Rome ;  he  obtained  from 
the  Pope  many  privileges  for  the  abbey,  and 
returned  in  the  year  680,  bringing  with  him  many 
more  valuable  books ;  he  was  accompanied  by  John 
the  Chantor,  who  introduced  into  the  English 
churches  the  Roman  method  of  singing.  He  was 
also  a  great  amator  librorum,  and  left  many  choice 
manuscripts  to  the  monks,  which  Bede  writes  "were 
still  preserved  in  their  library."  It  was  about  this 
time  that  Ecgfridf  gave  Benedict  a  portion  of  land 
on  the  other  side  of  the  river  Wire,  at  a  place 
called  Jarrow ;    and  that  enterprising  and    indus- 

*  "  Rediens  autem,  ubi  Viennam  pervenit,  eruptitios  sibi  quos 
apud  amicos  commendaverat,  recepit."  p.  26.  Vit.  Abbat.  Wear. 
\zmo  edit.  Ware. 

t  The  youngest  son  of  Oswy,  or  Oswis,  king  of  Northumbria, 
who  succeeded  his  father  in  the  year  670,  Alfred  his  elder  brother 
being  for  a  time  set  aside  on  the  grounds  of  his  illegitimacy;  yet 
Alfred  was  a  far  more  enlightened  and  talented  prince  than  Ecgfrid, 
and  much  praised  in  Saxon  annals  for  his  love  of  learning. 


BIBLIOMANIA.  159 

trious  abbot,  in  the  year  684,  built  a  monastery 
thereon.  No  sooner  was  it  completed,  than  he 
went  a  fifth  time  to  Rome  to  search  for  volumes  to 
gratify  his  darling  passion.  This  was  the  last,  but 
perhaps  the  most  successful  of  his  foreign  tours, 
for  he  brought  back  with  him  a  vast  quantity  of 
sacred  volumes  and  curious  pictures.*  How  deeply 
is  it  to  be  regretted  that  the  relation  of  the  travels 
which  Ceolfrid  his  successor  undertook,  and  which 
it  is  said  his  own  pen  inscribed,  has  been  lost  to  us 
forever.  He  probably  spoke  much  of  Benedict  in 
the  volume  and  recorded  his  book  pilgrimages. 
How  dearly  would  the  bibliomaniac  revel  over 
those  early  annals  of  his  science,  could  his  eye 
meet  those  venerable  pages — perhaps  describing 
the  choice  tomes  Benedict  met  with  in  his  Italian 
tours,  and  telling  us  how,  and  what,  and  where  he 
gleaned  those  fine  collections ;  sweet  indeed  would 
have  been  the  perusal  of  that  delectable  little  vo- 
lume, full  of  the  book  experience  of  a  bibliophile 
in  Saxon  days,  near  twelve  hundred  years  ago ! 
But  the  ravages  of  time  or  the  fury  of  the  Danes 
deprived  us  of  this  rare  gem,  and  we  are  alone 
dependent  on  Bede  for  the  incidents  connected  with 
the  life  of  this  great  man ;  we  learn  from  that 
venerable  author  that  Benedict  was  seized  with  the 
palsy  on  his  return,  and  that  languishing  a  few 
short  years,  he  died  in  the  year  690 ;  but  through 
pain  and  suffering  he  often  dwelt  on  the  sweet 
treasures  of  his  library,  and  his  solemn  thoughts  of 

*  Magna  quidem  copia  voluminum  sacrorum ;  sed  non  minori 
sicut  et  prius  sanctorum  imaginum  numere  detatus."  Vit.  Abb. 
p.  38. 


i6o  BIBLIOMANIA. 

death  and  immortality  were  intermixed  with  many 
a  fond  bookish  recollection.  His  most  noble  and 
abundant  library  which  he  brought  from  Rome  he 
constantly  referred  to,  and  gave  strict  injunctions 
that  the  monks  should  apply  the  utmost  care  to 
the  preservation  of  that  rich  and  costly  treasure,  in 
the  collection  of  which  so  many  perils  and  anxious 
years  were  spent.* 

We  all  know  the  force  of  example,  and  are  not 
surprised  that  the  sweet  mania  which  ruled  so 
potently  over  the  mind  of  Benedict,  spread  itself 
around  the  crowned  head  of  royalty.  Perhaps 
book  collecting  was  beginning  to  make  "a  stir," 
and  the  rich  and  powerful  among  the  Saxons  were 
regarding  strange  volumes  with  a  curious  eye. 
Certain  it  is  that  Egfride,  or  ^Ifride,  the  proud 
king  of  Northumbria,*!"  fondly  coveted  a  beautiful 
copy  of  the  geographer's  {codice  mirandi  operis), 
which  Benedict  numbered  among  his  treasures ; 
and  so  eagerly  too  did  he  desire  its  possession, 
that  he  gave  in  exchange  a  portion  of  eight  hides 
of  land,  near  the  river  Fresca,  for  the  volume ;  and 
Ceolfrid,  Benedict's  successor,  received  it. 

How  useful  must  Benedict's  library  have  been  in 
ripening  the  mind  that  was  to  cast  a  halo  of  im- 

*  Bibliothecam,  quam  de  Roma  nobillissimam  copiosessimanque 
advenaret  ad  instructionem  ecclesiae  necessariam  soUicite  servari  inte- 
gram,  nee  per  incuriam  fcedari  aut  passim  dissipari  prascepit." 

t  Bede  says  that  he  was  "learned, in  Holy  Scriptures."  Dr.  Henry 
mentions  this  anecdote  in  his  Hist,  of  England,  vol.  ii.  p.  287,  8vo. 
ed.  which  has  led  many  secondary  compilers  into  a  curious  blunder, 
by  mistaking  the  king  here  alluded  to  for  Alfred  the  Great :  even 
Didbin,  in  his  Bibliomania,  falls  into  the  same  error  although  he 
suspected  some  mistake;  he  calls  him  our  immortal  Alfrid,  p.  219, 
and  seems  puzzled  to  account  for  the  anachronism,  but  does  not  take 


BIBLIOMANIA.  i6i 

mortality  around  that  old  monastery,  and  to 
generate  a  renown  which  was  long  to  survive  the 
grey  walls  of  that  costly  fane ;  for  whilst  we  now 
fruitlessly  search  for  any  vestiges  of  its  former 
being,  we  often  peruse  the  living  pages  of  Bede 
the  venerable  with  pleasure  and  instruction,  and 
we  feel  refreshed  by  the  breath  of  piety  and  devo- 
tion which  they  unfold ;  yet  it  must  be  owned  the 
superstition  of  Rome  will  sometimes  mar  a  devout 
prayer  and  the  simplicity  of  a  Christian  thought. 
But  all  honor  to  his  manes  and  to  his  memory  !  for 
how  much  that  is  admirable  in  the  human  character 
— how  much  sweet  and  virtuous  humility  was  hid 
in  him,  in  the  strict  retirement  of  the  cloister.  The 
writings  of  that  humble  monk  outlive  the  fame  of 
many  a  proud  ecclesiastic  or  haughty  baron  of  his 
day ;  and  well  they  might,  for  how  homely  does  his 
pen  record  the  simple  annals  of  that  far  distant  age. 
Much  have  the  old  monks  been  blamed  for  their 
bad  Latin  and  their  humble  style ;  but  far  from 
upbraiding,  I  would  admire  them  for  it ;  for  is  not 
the  inelegance  of  diction  which  their  unpretending 
chronicles  display,  sufficiently  compensated  by  their 
charming  simplicity.  As  for  myself,  I  have  some- 
times read  them  by  the  blaze  of  my  cheerful  hearth, 
or  among  the  ruins  of  some  old  monastic  abbey,* 
till  in  imagination  I  beheld  the  events  which  they 

the  trouble  to  enquire  into  the  matter;  Heylin's  little  Help  to  History 
would  have  set  him  right,  and  shown  that  while  Alfrede  king  of 
Northumberland  reigned  in  680,  Alfred  king  of  England  lived  more 
than  two  centuries  afterwards,  pp.  25  and  29. 

*  The  reader  may  perhaps  smile  at  this,  but  it  has  long  been  my 
custom  to  carry  some  8vo  edition  of  a  monkish  writer  about  me,  when 
time  or  opportunity  allowed  me  to  spend  a  few  hours  among  the  ruins 


i62  BIBLIOMANIA. 

attempt  to  record,  and  could  almost  hear  the  voice 
of  the  "" goode  olde  monke"  as  he  relates  the  deeds 
of  some  holy  man — in  language  so  natural  and 
idiomatic  are  they  written. 

But  as  we  were  saying,  Bede  made  ample  use  of 
Benedict's  library ;  and  the  many  Latin  and  Greek 
books,  which  he  refers  to  in  the  course  of  his  writ- 
ings, were  doubtless  derived  from  that  source.* 
Ceolfrid,  the  successor  of  Benedict,  "a  man  of  great 
zeal,  of  acute  wisdom,  and  bold  in  action,"  was  a 
great  lover  of  books,  and  under  his  care  the  libraries 
of  Wearmouth  and  J  arrow  became  nearly  doubled 
in  extent ;  of  the  nature  of  these  additions  we  are 
unable  to  judge,  but  probably  they  were  not  con- 
temptiblcf 

Wilfrid,  bishop  of  Northumbria,  was  a  dear  and 
intimate  friend  of  Biscop's,  and  was  the  companion 
of  one  of  his  pilgrimages  to  Rome.  In  his  early 
youth  he  gave  visible  signs  of  a  heart  full  of  religion 
and  piety,  and  he  sought  by  a  steady  perusal  of  the 
Holy  Scriptures,  in  the  little  monastery  of  Lindes- 
farne,  to  garnish  his  mind  with  that  divine  lore 
with  which  he  shone  so  brightly  in  the  Saxon 
church.     It  was  at  the  court  of  Ercenbyrht,  king 

ot  the  olden  time.  I  recall  with  pleasure  the  recollection  of  many 
such  rambles,  and  especially  my  last — a  visit  to  Netley  Abbey.  What 
a  sweet  spot  for  contemplation ;  surrounded  by  all  that  is  lovely  in 
nature,  it  drives  our  old  prejudices  away,  and  touches  the  heart  with 
piety  and  awe.  Often  have  I  explored  its  ruins  and  ascended  its 
crumbling  parapets,  admiring  the  taste  of  those  Cistercian  monks  in 
choosing  so  quiet,  romantic,  and  choice  a  spot,  and  one  so  well  suited 
to  lead  man's  thoughts  to  sacred  things  above. 

*  Bede,  Vit.  Abb.  Wear.  p.  46. 

t  The  fine  libraries  thus  assiduously  collected  were  destroyed  by 
the  Danes ;  that  of  J  arrow  in  the  year  793,  and  that  of  Wearmouth 
in  867. 


BIBLIOMANIA.  163 

of  Kent,  that  he  met  with  Benedict  Biscop;  and 
the  sympathy  which  their  mutual  learning  engen- 
dered gave  rise  to  a  warm  and  devoted  friendship 
between  them.  Both  inspired  with  an  ardent  desire 
to  visit  the  apostolic  see,  they  set  out  together  for 
Rome;*  and  it  was  probably  by  the  illustrious 
example  of  his  fellow  student  and  companion,  that 
Wilfrid  imbibed  that  book-loving  passion  which  he 
afterwards  displayed  on  more  than  one  occasion. 
On  his  return  from  Rome,  Alfred  of  Northumbria 
bestowed  upon  him  the  monastery  of  Rhypumf  in 
the  year  661,  and  endowed  it  with  certain  lands. 
Peter  of  Blois  records,  in  his  life  of  Wilfrid,  that 
this  "  man  of  God  "  gave  the  monastery  a  copy  of 
the  gospels,  a  library,  and  many  books  of  the  Old 
and  New  Testament,  with  certain  tablets  made  with 
marvellous  ingenuity,  and  ornamented  with  gold 
and  precious  stones.J  Wilfrid  did  not  long  remain 
in  the  monastery  of  Ripon,  but  advanced  to  higher 
honors,  and  took  a  more  active  part  in  the  ecclesias- 
tical affairs  of  the  time.§  But  I  am  not  about  to 
pursue  his  history,  or  to  attempt  to  show  how  his 
hot  and  imperious  temper,  or  the  pride  and  avarice 
of  his  disposition,  wrought  many  grievous  animos- 
ities in  the  Saxon  church  ;  or  how  by  his  prelatical 
ambition  he  deservedly  lost  the  friendship  of  his 
King  and  his  ecclesiastical  honors.  | 

*  Emer,  Vita,  ap.  Mab.  Act.  SS.  torn.  iii.  199. 

t  Bede's  Eccles.  Hist.  b.  iii.  c.  xxv. 

X  "  Idemque  vir  Dei  quatuor  Evangelica  et  Bibliothecam  plu- 
resque  libros  Novi  et  Veteris  Testamenti  cum  tabulis  tectis  auro  puris- 
simo  et  pretiosis  gemmis  mirabili  artificio  fabricatis  ad  honorem  Dei." 
Dugdale's  Monast.  vol.  ii.  p.  133. 

%  In  665  he  was  raised  to  the  episcopacy  of  all  Northumbria. 

II  He  was  deprived  of  his  bishopric  in  the  year  678,  and  the  see 


i64  BIBLIOMANIA. 

About  this  time,  and  contemporary  with  Bede, 
we  must  not  omit  one  who  appears  as  a  bright  star 
in  the  early  Christian  church.  Boniface,  *  the 
Saxon  missionary,  was  remarked  by  his  parents  to 
manifest  at  an  early  age  signs  of  that  talent  which 
in  after  years  achieved  so  much,  and  advanced  so 
materially  the  interests  of  piety  and  the  cause  of 
civilization.  When  scarcely  four  years  old  his 
infant  mind  seemed  prone  to  study,  which  growing 
upon  him  as  he  increased  in  years,  his  parent 
placed  him  in  the  monastery  of  Exeter.  His  stay 
there  was  not  of  long  duration,  for  he  shortly  after 
removed  to  a  monastery  in  Hampshire  under  the 
care  of  Wybert.  In  seclusion  and  quietude  he 
there  studied  with  indefatigable  ardor,  and  fortified 
his  mindwith  that  pious  enthusiasm  and  profound 
erudition,  which  enabled  him  in  a  far  distant  country 
to  render  such  service  to  the  church.  He  was  made 
a  teacher,  and  when  arrived  at  the  necessary  age  he 
was  ordained  priest.  In  the  year  710,  a  dispute 
having  occurred  among  the  western  church  of  the 
Saxons,  he  was  appointed  to  undertake  a  mission 
to  the  archbishop  of  Canterbury  on  the  subject. 
Pleased  perhaps  with  the  variety  and  bustle  of 
travel,  and  inspired  with  a  holy  ambition,  he  deter- 
mined to  attempt  the  conversion  of  the  German 

was  divided  into  those  of  York  and  Hexham.  But  for  the  particulars 
of  his  conduct  see  Soame's  Anglo.  Sax.  Church,  p.  63,  with  Dr.  Lin- 
gard's  Ang.  Sax.  Church,  vol.  i.  p.  245  ;  though  without  accusing 
either  of  misrepresentation,  I  would  advise  the  reader  to  search  (if  he 
has  the  opportunity),  the  original  authorities  for  himself,  it  is  a  del- 
icate matter  for  a  Roman  or  an  English  churchman  to  handle  with 
impartiality. 

*  His  Saxon  name  was  Winfrid,  or  Wynfrith,  but  he  is  generally 
called  Boniface,  Archbishop  of  Mentz. 


BIBLIOMANIA.  165 

people,  who,  although  somewhat  acquainted  with 
the  gospel  truths,  had  nevertheless  deviated  mate- 
rially from  the  true  faith,  and  returned  again  to 
their  idolatry  and  paganism.  Heedless  of  the 
danger  of  the  expedition,  but  looking  forward  only 
to  the  consummation  of  his  fond  design,  he  started 
on  his  missionary  enterprise,  accompanied  by  one 
or  two  of  his  monkish  brethren. 

He  arrived  at  Friesland  in  the  year  yi6,  and 
proceeded  onwards  to  Utrecht ;  but  disappoint- 
ments and  failures  awaited  him.  The  revolt  of  the 
Frieslanders  and  the  persecution  then  raging  there 
against  the  Christians,  dissipated  his  hopes  of  use- 
fulness ;  and  with  a  heavy  heart,  no  doubt,  Boniface 
retraced  his  steps,  and  re-embarked  for  his  English 
home.  Yet  hope  had  not  deserted  him — his  philan- 
thropic resolutions  were  only  delayed  for  a  time ; 
for  no  sooner  had  the  dark  clouds  of  persecution 
passed  away  than  his  adventurous  spirit  burst 
forth  afresh,  and  shone  with  additional  lustre  and 
higher  aspirations.  After  an  interval  of  two  years 
we  find  him  again  starting  on  another  Christian 
mission.  On  reaching  France  he  proceeded  imme- 
diately to  Rome,  and  procured  admission  to  the 
Pope,  who,  ever  anxious  for  the  promulgation  of 
the  faith  and  for  the  spiritual  dominion  of  the 
Roman  church,  highly  approved  of  the  designs  of 
Boniface,  and  gave  him  letters  authorizing  his 
mission  among  the  Thuringians ;  invested  with 
these  powers  and  with  the  pontifical  blessing,  he 
took  his  departure  from  the  holy  city,  well  stored 
with  the  necessary  ornaments  and  utensils  for  the 
performance  of  the  ecclesiastical  rites,   besides  a 


i66  BIBLIOMANIA. 

number  of  books  to  instruct  the  heathens  and  to 
solace  his  mind  amidst  the  cares  and  anxieties  of  his 
travels.  After  some  few  years  the  fruits  of  his 
labor  became  manifest,  and  in  723  he  had  baptized 
vast  multitudes  in  the  true  faith.  His  success  was 
perhaps  unparalleled  in  the  early  annals  of  the 
church,  and  remind  us  of  the  more  recent  wonders 
wrought  by  the  Jesuit  missionaries  in  India.* 
Elated  with  these  happy  results,  far  greater  than 
even  his  sanguine  mind  had  anticipated,  he  sent  a 
messenger  to  the  Pope  to  acquaint  his  holiness  of 
these  vast  acquisitions  to  his  flock,  and  soon  after 
he  went  himself  to  Rome  to  receive  the  congratula- 
tions and  thanks  of  the  Pontiff ;  he  was  then  made 
bishop,  and  entrusted  with  the  ecclesiastical  direc- 
tion of  the  new  church.  After  his  return,  he  spent 
many  years  in  making  fresh  converts  and  main- 
taining the  discipline  of  the  faithful.  But  all  these 
labors  and  these  anxieties  were  terminated  by  a 
cruel  and  unnatural  death  ;  on  one  of  his  expeditions 
he  was  attacked  by  a  body  of  pagans,  who  slew  him 
and  nearly  the  whole  of  his  companions,  but  it  is  not 
here  that  a  Christian  must  look  for  his  reward — he 
must  rest  his  hopes  on  the  benevolence  and  mercy 
of  his  God  in  a  distant  and  far  better  world.  He 
who  would  wish  to  trace  more  fully  these  events, 
and  so  catch  a  glimpse  of  the  various  incidents 

*  The  mere  act  of  baptizing  constitutes  ^^ conversion  "  in  Jesuitical 
phraseology  ;  and  thousands  were  so  converted  in  a  few  days  by  the 
followers  of  Ignatius.  A  similar  process  was  used  in  working  out  the 
miracles  of  the  Saxon  missionary.  He  was  rather  too  conciliating 
and  too  anxious  for  a  "converting  miracle,"  to  be  over  particular; 
but  it  was  all  for  the  good  of  the  church  papal,  to  whom  he  was  a 
devoted  servant ;  the  church  papal  therefore  could  not  see  the  fault. 


BIBLIOMANIA.  167 

which  touch  upon  the  current  of  his  life,  must  not 
keep  the  monk  constantly  before  his  mind,  he  must 
sometimes  forget  him  in  that  capacity  and  regard 
him  as  a  student,  and  that  too  in  the  highest 
acceptation  of  the  term.  His  youthful  studies, 
which  I  have  said  before  were  pursued  with  uncon- 
querable energy,  embraced  grammar,  poetry,  rhe- 
toric, history,  and  the  exposition  of  the  Holy 
Scriptures ;  the  Bible,  indeed,  he  read  unceasingly, 
and  drew  from  it  much  of  the  vital  truth  with  which 
it  is  inspired ;  but  he  perhaps  too  much  tainted  it 
with  traditional  interpretation  and  patristical  logic. 
A  student's  life  is  always  interesting  ;  like  a  rippling 
stream,  its  unobtrusive  gentle  course  is  ever  pleas- 
ing to  watch,  and  the  book-worms  seems  to  find  in 
it  the  counterpart  of  his  own  existence.  Who  can 
read  the  life  and  letters  of  the  eloquent  Cicero,  or 
the  benevolent  Pliny,  without  the  deepest  interest ; 
or  mark  their  anxious  solicitude  after  books,  without 
sincere  delight.  Those  elegant  epistles  reflect  the 
image  of  their  private  studies,  and  so  to  behold 
Boniface  in  a  student's  garb,  to  behold  his  love  of 
books  and  passion  for  learning,  we  must  alike  have 
recourse  to  his  letters. 

The  epistolary  correspondence  of  the  middle 
ages  is  a  mirror  of  those  times,  far  more  faithful  as 
regards  their  social  condition  than  the  old  chron- 
icles and  histories  designed  for  posterity ;  written 
in  the  reciprocity  of  friendly  civilities,  they  contain 
the  outpourings  of  the  heart,  and  enable  us  to  peep 
into  the  secret  thoughts  and  motives  of  the  writer ; 
**  for  out  of  the  fulness  of  the  hearth  the  mouth 
speaketh."     Turning  over  the  letters  of  Boniface, 


i68  BIBLIOMANIA. 

we  cannot  but  be  forcibly  struck  with  his  great 
knowledge  of  Scripture;  his  mind  seems  to  have 
been  quite  a  concordance  in  itself,  and  we  meet 
with  epistles  almost  solely  framed  of  quotations 
from  the  sacred  books,  in  substantiation  of  some 
principle,  or  as  grounds  for  some  argument  ad- 
vanced. These  are  pleasurable  instances,  and 
convey  a  gentle  hint  that  the  greater  plenitude  of 
the  Bible  has  not,  in  all  cases,  emulated  us  to 
study  it  with  equal  energy ;  there  are  few  who 
would  now  surpass  the  Saxon  bishop  in  biblical 
reading. 

Most  students  have  felt,  at  some  period  or 
other,  a  thirst  after  knowledge  without  the  means 
of  assuaging  it — have  felt  a  craving  after  books 
when  their  pecuniary  circumstances  would  not 
admit  of  their  acquisition,  such  will  sympathize 
with  Boniface,  the  student  in  the  wilds  of  Ger- 
many, who,  far  from  monastic  libraries,  sorely 
laments  in  some  of  his  letters  this  great  depriva- 
tion, and  entreats  his  friends,  sometimes  in  most 
piteous  terms,  to  send  him  books.  In  writing  to 
Daniel,  Bishop  of  Winchester,  he  asks  for  copies, 
and  begs  him  to  send  the  book  of  the  six  prophets, 
clearly  and  distinctly  transcribed,  and  in  large 
letters  because  his  sight  he  says  was  growing 
weak ;  and  because  the  book  of  the  prophets  was 
much  wanted  in  Germany,  and  could  not  be  ob- 
tained except  written  so  obscurely,  and  the  letters 
so  confusedly  joined  together,  as  to  be  scarcely 
readable  ac  connexas  litter  as  discere  non  possum.'^ 
To  "  Majestro  Lul "  he  writes  for  the  productions 

*  Ep.  iii.  p.  7,  Ed.  4to. — Moguntia,  1629. 


BIBLIOMANIA.  169 

of  bishop  Aldhelm,  and  other  works  of  prose, 
poetry,  and  rhyme,  to  console  him  in  his  peregrina- 
tions ad  consolationem  peregrinationis  mecs.'^  With 
Abbess  Eadburge  he  frequently  corresponded,  and 
received  from  her  many  choice  and  valuable  vo- 
lumes, transcribed  by  her  nuns  and  sometimes  by 
her  own  hands ;  at  one  period  he  writes  in  glowing 
terms  and  with  a  grateful  pen  for  the  books  thus 
sent  him,  and  a  another  time  he  sends  for  a  copy  of 
the  Gospels.  **  Execute,"  says  he,  "  a  glittering 
lamp  for  our  hands,  and  so  illuminate  the  hearts  of 
the  Gentiles  to  a  study  of  the  Gospels  and  to  the 
glory  of  Christ ;  and  intercede,  I  pray  thee,  with 
your  pious  prayers  for  these  pagans  who  are  com- 
mitted by  the  apostles  to  our  care,  that  by  the 
mercy  of  the  Saviour  of  the  world  they  may  be 
delivered  from  their  idolatrous  practices,  and  united 
to  the  congregation  of  mother  church,  to  the  honor 
of  the  Catholic  faith,  and  to  the  praise  and  glory 
of  His  name,  who  will  have  all  men  to  be  saved, 
and  to  come  unto  the  knowledge  of  the  truth.f 

All  this  no  doubt  the  good  abbess  faithfully 
fulfilled ;  and  stimulated  by  his  friendship  and  these 
encouraging  epistles,  she  set  all  the  pens  in  her 
monastery  industriously  to  work,  and  so  gratified 
the  Saxon  missionary  with  those  book  treasures, 
which  his  soul  so  ardently  loved ;  certain  it  is,  that 
we  frequently  find  him  thanking  her  for  books,  and 
with  famishing  eagerness  craving  for  more  ;  one  of 
his  letters,J  full  of  gratitude,  he  accompanies  with 
a  present  of  a  silver  graphium,  or  writing  instru- 

•  Ep.  iv.  p.  8.  X  Ep.  vii.  p.  11. 

t  Ep.  xiii. 


I/O  BIBLIOMANIA. 

ment,  and  soon  after  we  find  him  thus  addressing 
her  : 

"  To  the  most  beloved  sister,  Abbess  Eadburge,  and  all  now 
joined  to  her  house  and  under  her  spiritual  care.  Boniface,  the 
meanest  servant  of  God,  wisheth  eternal  health  in  Christ." 

"  My  dearest  sister,  may  your  assistance  be 
abundantly  rewarded  hereafter  in  the  mansions  of 
the  angels  and  saints  above,  for  the  kind  presents 
of  books  which  you  have  transmitted  to  me.  Ger- 
many rejoices  in  their  spiritual  light  and  consola- 
tion, because  they  have  spread  lustre  into  the  dark 
hearts  of  the  German  people  ;  for  except  we  have 
a  lamp  to  guide  our  feet,  we  may,  in  the  words  of 
the  Lord,  fall  into  the  snares  of  death.  Moreover, 
through  thy  gifts  I  earnestly  hope  to  be  more 
diligent,  so  that  my  country  may  be  honored,  my 
sins  forgiven,  and  myself  protected  from  the  perils 
of  the  sea  and  the  violence  of  the  tempest ;  and 
that  He  who  dwells  on  high  may  lightly  regard  my 
transgression,  and  give  utterance  to  the  words  of 
my  mouth,  that  the  Gospel  may  have  free  course, 
and  be  glorified  among  men  to  the  honor  of 
Christ."* 

Writing  to  Egbert,  Archbishop  of  York,  of 
whose  bibliomaniacal  character  and  fine  library  we 
have  yet  to  speak,  Boniface  thanks  that  illustrious 
collector  for  the  choice  volumes  he  had  kindly  sent 
him,  and  further  entreats  Egbert  to  procure  for 
him  transcripts  of  the  smaller  works  opusculi  and 
other  tracts  of  Bede,  "  who,  I  hear,"  he  writes, 
"has,  by  the  divine  grace  of  the  Holy  Spirit,  been 

•  Ep.  xiv.     See  also  Ep.  xxviii.  p.  40. 


BIBLIOMANIA.  171 

permitted  to  spread  such  lustre  over  your  country."* 
These,  that  kind  and  benevolent  prelate  sent  to 
him  with  other  books,  and  received  a  letter  full  of 
gratitude  in  return,  but  with  all  the  boldness  of  a 
hungry  student  still  asking  for  more  !  especially  for 
Bede's  Commentary  on  the  Parables  of  Solomon.f 
He  sents  to  Archbishop  Nothelm  for  a  copy  of  the 
Questions  of  St.  Augustine  to  Pope  Gregory,  with 
the  answers  of  the  pope,  which  he  says  he  could 
not  obtain  from  Rome ;  and  in  writing  to  Cuthbert, 
also  Archbishop  of  Canterbury,  imploring  the  aid 
of  his  earnest  prayers,  he  does  not  forget  to  ask  for 
books,  but  hopes  that  he  may  be  speedily  comforted 
with  the  works  of  Bede,  of  whose  writings  he  was 
especially  fond,  and  was  constantly  sending  to  his 
friends  for  transcripts  of  them.  In  a  letter  to 
Huetberth  he  writes  for  the  '*  most  sagacious  dis- 
sertations of  the  monk  Bede,"J  and  to  the  Abbot 
Dudde  he  sends  a  begging  message  for  the  Com- 
mentaries on  the  Epistles  of  Paul  to  the  Romans 
and  to  the  Corinthians§  by  the  same.  In  a  letter 
to  Lulla,  Bishop  of  Coena,  he  deplores  the  want  of 
books  on  the  phenomena  and  works  of  nature, 
which,  he  says,  were  omnio  incognitum  there,  and 
asks  for  a  book  on  Cosmography ;  ||  and  on  another 
occasion  Lulla  supplied  Boniface  with  many  por- 
tions of  the  Holy  Scriptures,  and  Commentaries 
upon  them.^  Many  more  of  his  epistles  might  be 
quoted  to  illustrate  the  Saxon  missionary  as  an 
'' amator  librorum''  and  to   display  his  profound 

*  Ep.  viii.  p.  12.  %  Ep.  xxii.  p.  36. 

t  Ep.  Ixxxv.  p.  119.  II  Ep.  xcix.  p.  135. 

i  Ep.  ix.  p.  13.  IT  Ep.  cxi.  p.  153. 


172  BIBLIOMANIA. 

erudition.  In  one  of  his  letters  we  find  him  refer- 
ring to  nearly  all  the  celebrated  authors  of  the 
church,  and  so  aptly,  that  we  conclude  he  must 
have  had  their  works  on  his  desk,  and  was  deeply 
read  in  patristical  theology.  Boniface  has  been 
fiercely  denounced  for  his  strong  Roman  principles, 
and  for  his  firm  adherence  to  the  interests  of  the 
pope.*  Of  his  theological  errors,  or  his  faults  as  a 
church  disciplinarian,  I  have  nothing  here  to  do, 
but  leave  that  delicate  question  to  the  ecclesiastical 
historian,  having  vindicated  his  character  from  the 
charge  of  ignorance,  and  displayed  some  pleasing 
traits  which  he  evinced  as  a  student  and  book- 
collector.  It  only  remains  to  be  mentioned,  that 
many  of  the  membranous  treasures,  which  Boniface 
had  so  eagerly  searched  for  and  collected  from  all 
parts,  were  nearly  lost  forever.  The  pagans,  who 
murdered  Boniface  and  his  fellow-monks,  on  en- 
tering their  tents,  discovered  little  to  gratify  their 
avarice,  save  a  few  relics  and  a  number  of  books, 
which,  with  a  barbarism  corresponding  with  their 
ignorance,  they  threw  into  the  river  as  useless ;  but 
fortunately,  some  of  the  monks,  who  had  escaped 
from  their  hands,  observing  the  transaction,  re- 
covered them  and  carried  them  away  in  safety  with 
the  remains  of  the  martyred  missionary,  who  was 
afterwards  canonized  Saint  Boniface. 

The  must  remarkable  book  collector  contem- 
porary with  Boniface,  was  Egbert  of  York,  between 

*  The  accusation  is  not  a  groundless  one.  Foxe,  in  his  Acts 
and  Monuments,  warmly  upbraids  him;  and  Aikins  in  his  Biog. 
Diet.,  has  acted  in  a  similar  manner.  But  the  best  guides  are  his 
letters — they  display  his  faults  and  his  virtues  too. 


BIBLIOMANIA.  173 

whom,  as  we  have  seen,  a  bookish  correspondence 
was  maintained.  This  illustrious  prelate  was 
brother  to  King  Egbert,  of  Northumbria,  and 
received  his  education  under  Bishop  Eata,  at  Hex- 
ham, about  the  year  686.  He  afterwards  went  on 
a  visit  to  the  Apostolic  See,  and  on  his  return  was 
made  Archbishop  of  York.*  He  probably  col- 
lected at  Rome  many  of  the  fine  volumes  which 
comprised  his  library,  and  which  was  so  celebrated 
in  those  old  Saxon  days ;  and  which  will  be  ever 
renowned  in  the  annals  of  ancient  bibliomania.  The 
immortal  Alcuin  sang  the  praises  of  this  library  in 
a  tedious  lay ;  and  what  glorious  tomes  of  antiquity 
he  there  enumerates !  But  stay,  my  pen  should 
tarry  whilst  I  introduce  that  worthy  bibliomaniac 
to  my  reader,  and  relate  some  necessary  anecdotes 
and  facts  connected  with  his  early  life  and  times. 
Alcuin  was  born  in  England,  and  probably  in 
the  immediate  vicinity  of  York ;  he  was  descended 
from  affluent  and  noble  parents ;  but  history  is 
especially  barren  on  this  subject,  and  we  have  no 
information  to  instruct  us  respecting  the  antiquity 
of  his  Saxon  ancestry.  But  if  obscurity  hangs 
around  his  birth,  so  soon  as  he  steps  into  the  paths 
of  learning  and  ranks  with  the  students  of  his  day, 
we  are  no  longer  in  doubt  or  perplexity ;  but  are 
able  from  that  period  to  his   death  to  trace  the 

*  This  was  in  the  year  731.  Goodwin  says  he  "sate  36  years, 
and  died  an.  767."  He  says,  "  This  man  by  his  owne  wisedome,  and 
the  authority  of  his  brother,  amended  greatly  the  state  of  his  church 
and  see.  He  procured  the  archiepiscopall  pall  to  be  restored  to  his 
churche  againe,  and  erected  a  famous  library  at  York,  which  he 
stored  plentifully  with  an  infinite  number  of  excellent  bookes." 
p.  441. 


174  BIBLIOMANIA. 

occurrences  of  his  life  with  all  the  ease  that  a 
searcher  of  monkish  history  can  expect.  He  had 
the  good  fortune  to  receive  his  education  from 
Egbert,  and  under  his  care  he  soon  became 
initiated  into  the  mysteries  of  grammar,  rhetoric, 
and  jurisprudence ;  which  were  relieved  by  the 
more  fascinating  study  of  poetry,  physics,  and 
astronomy.*  So  much  was  he  esteemed  by  his 
master  the  archbishop,  that  he  entrusted  him  with 
a  mission  to  Rome,  to  receive  from  the  hands  of 
the  Pope  his  pall ;  on  his  return  he  called  at  Parma, 
where  he  had  an  interview  with  Charles  the  Great ; 
who  was  so  captivated  with  his  eloquence  and  erudi- 
tion that  he  eagerly  entreated  him  to  remain,  and  to 
aid  in  diffusing  throughout  his  kingdom  the  spirit 
of  that  knowledge  which  he  had  so  successfully  ac- 
quired in  the  Saxon  monasteries.  But  Alcuin  was 
equally  anxious  for  the  advancement  of  literature 
in  his  own  country  ;  and  being  then  on  a  mission 
connected  with  his  church,  he  could  do  no  more 
than  hold  out  a  promise  of  consulting  his  superiors, 
to  whose  decisions  he  considered  himself  bound  to 
submit. 

During  the  dominion  of  Charles,  the  eccle- 
siastical as  well  as  the  political  institutions  of 
France,  were  severely  agitated  by  heresy  and  war : 
the  two  great  questions  of  the  age — the  Worship 
of  Images  and  the  Nature  of  Christ — divided  and 
perplexed  the  members  of  a  church  which  had 
hitherto  been  permitted  to  slumber  in  peace  and 
quietude.  The  most  prominent  of  the  heretics 
was  Felix,  Bishop  of  tJrgel,  who  maintained  in  a 

*  De  Pontificibus  et  Sanctis  Ecclesise  Eboracensis. 


BIBLIOMANIA.  175 

letter  to  EHpand,  Bishop  of  Toledo,  that  Christ 
was  only  the  Son  of  God  by  adoption.  It  was 
about  the  time  of  the  convocation  of  the  Council 
of  Frankfort,  assembled  to  consider  this  point,  that 
Alcuin  returned  to  France  at  the  earnest  solicita- 
tion of  Charlemagne.  When  the  business  of  the 
council  was  terminated,  and  peace  was  somewhat 
restored,  Alcuin  began  to  think  of  returning  to  his 
native  country ;  but  England  at  that  time  was  a 
land  of  bloodshed  and  tribulation,  in  the  midst  of 
which  it  would  be  vain  to  hope  for  retirement  or 
the  blessings  of  study;  after  some  deliberation, 
therefore,  Alcuin  resolved  to  remain  in  France, 
where  there  was  at  least  a  wide  field  for  exertion 
and  usefulness.  He  communicates  his  intention  in 
a  letter  to  Offa,  King  of  Mercia.  "  I  was  prepared," 
says  he,  "  to  come  to  you  with  the  presents  of  King 
Charles,  and  to  return  to  my  country ;  but  it  seemed 
more  advisable  to  me  for  the  peace  of  my  nation  to 
remain  abroad ;  not  knowing  what  I  could  have 
done  among  those  persons  with  whom  no  man  can 
be  secure  or  able  to  proceed  in  any  laudable 
pursuit.  See  every  holy  place  laid  desolate  by 
pagans,  the  altars  polluted  by  perjury,  the  mon- 
asteries dishonored  by  adultery,  the  earth  itself 
stained  with  the  blood  of  rulers  and  of  princes."* 

After  the  elapse  of  many  years  spent  in  the 
brilliant  court  of  Charles,  during  which  time  it  sur- 
passed in  literary  greatness  any  epoch  that  preceded 
it,  he  was  permitted  to  seek  retirement  within  the 
walls  of  the  abbey  of  St.  Martin's  at  Tours.     But 

*  Alcuini  Oper.,  torn.  i.  vol.  i,  p.  57,  translated  in  Sharpe's 
William  of  Malmsbury,  p.  73. 


176  BIBLIOMANIA. 

in  escaping  from  the  bustle  and  intrigue  of  public 
life  he  did  not  allow  his  days  to  pass  away  in  an 
inglorious  obscurity;  but  sought  to  complete  his 
earthly  career  by  inspiring  the  rising  generation 
with  an  honorable  and  christian  ambition.  His 
cloistered  solitude,  far  from  weakening,  seems  to 
have  augmented  the  fertility  of  his  genius,  for  it 
was  in  the  quiet  seclusion  of  this  monastery  that 
Alcuin  composed  the  principal  portion  of  his 
works ;  nor  are  these  writings  an  accumulation  of 
monastic  trash,  but  the  fruits  of  many  a  solitary 
hour  spent  in  studious  meditation.  His  method  is 
perhaps  fantastic  and  unnatural ;  but  his  style  is 
lively,  and  often  elegant.  His  numerous  quota 
tions  and  references  give  weight  and  interest  to 
his  writings,  and  clearly  proves  what  a  fine  old 
library  was  at  his  command,  and  how  well  he  knew 
the  use  of  it.  But  for  the  elucidation  of  his  char- 
acter as  a  student,  or  a  bibliomaniac,  we  naturally 
turn  to  the  huge  mass  of  his  epistles  which  have 
been  preserved ;  and  in  them  we  find  a  constant 
reference  to  books  which  shew  his  intimacy  with 
the  classics  as  well  as  the  patristical  lore  of  the 
church.  In  biblical  literature  he  doubtless  pos- 
sessed many  a  choice  and  venerable  tome ;  for  an 
indefatigable  scripture  reader  was  that  great  man. 
In  a  curious  little  work  of  his  called  ''  Interroga- 
tiones  et  Responsiones  sui  Liber  Questionorum  in 
Ge7iesim"  we  find  an  illustration  of  his  usefulness 
in  spreading  the  knowledge  he  had  gained  in  this 
department  of  learning.  It  was  written  expressly 
for  his  pupil  and  dearest  brother  (carissime  /rater), 
Sigulf,  as  we  learn  from  a  letter  which  accompanies 


BIBLIOMANIA.  177 

it.  He  tells  him  that  he  had  composed  it  *'  that  he 
might  always  have  near  him  the  means  of  refreshing 
his  memory  when  the  more  ponderous  volumes  of 
the  sacred  Scriptures  were  not  at  his  immediate 
call."*  Perhaps  of  all  his  works  this  is  the  least 
deserving  of  our  praise ;  the  good  old  monk  was 
apt  to  be  prolix,  if  not  tedious,  when  he  found  the 
stylus  in  his  hand  and  a  clean  skin  of  parchment 
spread  invitingly  before  him.  But  as  this  work  was 
intended  as  a  manual  to  be  consulted  at  any  time, 
he  was  compelled  to  curb  this  propensity,  and  to 
reduce  his  explications  to  a  few  concise  sentences. 
Writing  under  this  restraint,  we  find  little  bearing 
the  stamp  of  originality,  not  because  he  had  nothing 
original  to  say,  but  because  he  had  not  space  to 
write  it  in  ;  I  think  it  necessary  to  give  this  explana- 
tion, as  some  critics  upon  the  learning  of  that 
remote  age  select  these  small  and  ill-digested  writ- 
ings as  fair  specimens  of  the  literary  capacity  of  the 
time,  without  considering  why  they  were  written  or 
compiled  at  all.  But  as  a  scribe  how  shall  we 
sufficiently  praise  that  great  man  when  we  take 
into  consideration  the  fine  Bible  which  he  executed 
for  Charlemagne,  and  which  is  now  fortunately 
preserved  in  the  British  Museum.  It  is  a  superb 
copy  of  St.  Jerome's  Latin  version,  freed  from  the 
inaccuracies  of  the  scribes ;  he  commenced  it  about 
the  year  778,  and  did  not  complete  it  till  the  year 
800,  a  circumstance  which  indicates  the  great  care 
he  bestowed  upon  it.  When  finished  he  sent  it  to 
Rome  by  his  friend  and  disciple,  Nathaniel,  who 
presented  it  to  Charlemagne  on  the  day  of  his 
*  Opera,  torn.  i.  p.  305. 


178  BIBLIOMANIA, 

coronation  :  it  was  preserved  by  that  illustrious 
monarch  to  the  last  day  of  his  life.  Alcuin  makes 
frequent  mention  of  this  work  being  in  progress, 
and  speaks  of  the  labor  he  was  bestowing  upon  it* 
We,  who  blame  the  monks  for  the  scarcity  of  the 
Bible  among  them,  fail  to  take  into  consideration 
the  immense  labor  attending  the  transcriptions  of 
so  great  a  volume;  plodding  and  patience  were 
necessary  to  complete  it.  The  history  of  this 
biblical  gem  is  fraught  with  interest,  and  well 
worth  relating.  It  is  supposed  to  have  been  given 
to  the  monastery  of  Prum  in  Lorraine  by  Lothaire, 
the  grandson  of  Charlemagne,  who  became  a  monk 
of  that  monastery.  In  the  year  1576  this  religious 
house  was  dissolved,  but  the  monks  preserved  the 
manuscript,  and  carried  it  into  Switzerland  to  the 
abbey  of  Grandis  Vallis,  near  Basle,  where  it 
reposed  till  the  year  1 793  ,  when,  on  the  occupation 
of  the  episcopal  territory  of  Basle  by  the  French, 
all  the  property  of  the  abbey  was  confiscated  and 
sold,  and  the  MS.  under  consideration  came  into 
the  possession  of  M.  Bennot,  from  whom,  in  1822, 
it  was  purchased  by  M.  Speyr  Passavant,  who 
brought  it  into  general  notice,  and  offered  it  for 
sale  to  the  French  Government  at  the  price  of 
60,000  francs ;  this  they  declined,  and  its  proprietor 
struck  of  nearly  20,000  francs  from  the  amount ; 
still  the  sum  was  deemed  exorbitant,  and  with  all 
their  bibliomanical  enthusiasm,  the  conservers  of 

*  In  a  letter  to  Gisla,  sister  to  the  emperor,  he  writes  "Totius 
forsitan  evangelii  Johannis  expositionem  direxissem  vobis,  si  me  non 
occupasset  Domini  Regis  praeceptum  in  emendatione  Veteri  Novique 
Testamenti." — Opera,  torn.  i.  vol.  7,  p.  591. 


BIBLIOMANIA.  179 

the  Royal  Library  allowed  the  treasure  to  escape. 
M.  Passavant  subsequently  brought  it  to  England, 
where  it  was  submitted  to  the  Duke  of  Sussex,  still 
without  success.  He  also  applied  to  the  trustees 
of  the  British  Museum,  and  Sir  F.  Madden  informs 
us  that  "  much  correspondence  took  place ;  at  first 
he  asked  12,000/.  for  it;  then  8,000/.,  and  at  last 
6,500/,  which  he  declared  an  immense  sacrifice!! 
At  length,  finding  he  could  not  part  with  his  MS. 
on  terms  so  absurd,  he  resolved  to  sell  it  if  possible 
by  auction  ;  and  accordingly,  on  the  27th  of  April, 
1836,  the  Bible  was  knocked  down  by  Mr.  Evans 
for  the  sum  of  1,500/,  but  for  the  proprietor  him- 
self, as  there  was  not  one  real  bidding  for  it.  This 
result  having  brought  M.  Speyr  Passavant  in  some 
measure  to  his  senses,  overtures  were  made  to  him 
on  the  part  of  the  trustees  to  the  British  Museum, 
and  the  manuscript  finally  became  the  property  of 
the  nation,  for  the  comparatively  small  sum  of  750/" 
There  can  be  no  doubt  as  to  the  authenticity  of 
this  precious  volume,  the  verses  of  Alcuin's,  found 
in  the  manuscript,  sufficiently  prove  it,  for  he  alone 
could  write — 

"  Is  Carolus  qui  jam  Scribe  jussit  eum." 


"  Haec  Dator  ^temus  cunctorum  Christe  bonorum, 
Munera  de  donis  accipe  sancta  tuis, 
Quae  Pater  Albinus  devoto  pectore  supplex 
Nominus  ad  laudem  obtulit  ecce  tui." 

Other  proofs  are  not  wanting  of  Alcuin's  industry 
as  a  scribe,  or  his  enthusiasm  as  an  amator  librorum. 
Mark  the  rapture  with  which  he  describes  the  library 
of  York  Cathedral,  collected  by  Egbert : 


i8o  BIBLIOMANIA. 

"  lUic  invenies  veteram  vestigia  Patrum, 

Quidquid  habet  pro  se  Latio  Romanus  in  orbe, 
Graecia  vel  quidquid  transmisit  Clara  Latinis. 
Hebraicus  vel  quod  populus  bibet  imbre  superno 
Africa  lucifluo  vel  quidquid  lumine  sparsit. 
Quod  Pater  Hieronymus  quod  sensit  Hilarius,  atque 
Ambrosius  Praesul  simul  Augustinus,  et  ipse 
Sanctus  Athanasius,  quod  Orosius,  edit  avitus : 
Quidquid  Gregorius  summus  docet,  et  Leo  Papa; 
Basilius  quidquid,  Fulgentius  atque  coruscant 
Cassiodorus  item,  Chrysostomus  atque  Johannes : 
Quidquid  et  Athelmus  docuit,  quid  Beda  Magister, 
Quae  Victorinus  scrips^re,  Boetius;  atque 
Historici  veteres,  Pompeius,  Plinius,  ipse 
Acer  Aristoteles,  Rhetor  quoque  Tullius  ingens; 
Quidquoque  Sedulius,  vel  quid  canit  ipse  Invencus, 
Alcuinus,  et  Clemens,  Prosper,  Paulinus,  Arator. 
Quid  Fortunatus,  vel  quid  Lactantius  edunt; 
Quae  Maro  Virgilius,  Statins,  Lucanus,  et  auctor 
Artis  Grammaticae,  vel  quid  scrips^re  magistri ; 
Quid  Probus  atque  Focas,  Donatus,  Priscian  usve, 
Sevius,  Euticius,  Pompeius,  Commenianus, 
Invenies  aUos  perplures,  lector,  ibidem 
Egregios  studiis,  arte  et  sermone  magistros 
Plurima  qui  claro  scripsere  volumina  sensu  : 
Nomina  sed  quorum  praesenti  in  carmine  scribi 
Longius  est  visum,  quam  plectri  postulet  usus."* 

Often  did  Alcuin  think  of  these  goodly  times  with 
a  longing  heart,  and  wish  that  he  could  revel 
among  them  whilst  in  France.  How  deeply  would 
he  have  regretted,  how  many  tears  would  he  have 
shed  over  the  sad  destruction  of  that  fine  library, 
had  he  have  known  it ;  but  his  bones  had  mingled 
with  the  dust  when  the  Danes  dispersed  those  rare 
gems  of  ancient  lore.  If  the  reader  should  doubt 
the  ardor  of  Alcuin  as  a  book-lover,  let  him  read 

•  Alcuini,  ap.  Gale,  torn.  iii.  p.  730. 


BIBLIOMANIA.  i8i 

the   following   letter,    addressed  to   Charlemagne, 
which  none  but  a  bibliomaniac  could  pen. 

"  I,  your  Flaccus,  according  to  your  admonitions 
and  good-will,  administer  to  some  in  the  house  of 
St.  Martin,  the  sweets  of  the  Holy  Scriptures, 
Sanctarum  mella  Scripturarum  :  others  I  inebriate 
with  the  study  of  ancient  wisdom ;  and  others  I  fill 
with  the  fruits  of  grammatical  lore.  Many  I  seek 
to  instruct  in  the  order  of  the  stars  which  illuminate 
the  glorious  vault  of  heaven  ;  so  that  they  may  be 
made  ornaments  to  the  holy  church  of  God  and  the 
court  of  your  imperial  majesty ;  that  the  goodness 
of  God  and  your  kindness  may  not  be  altogether 
unproductive  of  good.  But  in  doing  this  I  discover 
the  want  of  much,  especially  those  exquisite  books 
of  scholastic  learning,  which  I  possessed  in  my  own 
country,  through  the  industry  of  my  good  and  most 
devout  master  (Egbert).  I  therefore  intreat  your 
Excellence  to  permit  me  to  send  into  Britain  some 
of  our  youths  to  procure  those  books  which  we  so 
much  desire,  and  thus  transplant  into  France  the 
flowers  of  Britain,  that  they  may  fructify  and  per- 
fume, not  only  the  garden  at  York,  but  also  the 
Paradise  of  Tours ;  and  that  we  may  say,  in  the 
words  of  the  song,  '  Let  my  beloved  come  into  his 
garden  and  eat  his  pleasant  fruit;'  and  to  the 
young,  ^  Bat,  O  friends ;  drink,  yea,  drink,  abun- 
dantly, O  beloved ;  or  exhort,  in  the  words  of  the 
prophet  Isaiah,  'every  one  that  thirsteth  to  come  to 
the  waters,  and  ye  that  hath  no  money,  come  ye,  buy 
and  eat:  yea,  come,  buy  wine  and  milk  without 
m^oney  and  without  price' 

"Your  Majesty  is  not  ignorant  how  earnestly 


i82  BIBLIOMANIA. 

we  are  exhorted  throughout  the  Holy  Scriptures 
to  search  after  wisdom ;  nothing  so  tends  to  the 
attainment  of  a  happy  life ;  nothing  more  delight- 
ful or  more  powerful  in  resisting  vice ;  nothing 
more  honorable  to  an  exalted  dignity ;  and,  ac- 
cording to  philosophy,  nothing  more  needful  to 
a  just  government  of  a  people.  Thus  Solomon 
exclaims,  *  Wisdom  is  better  than  rubies,  and  all 
the  things  that  may  be  desired  are  not  to  be  com,pared 
to  it.'  It  exalteth  the  humble  with  sublime  honors. 
'  By  wisdom  kings  reign  and  princes  decree  justice  : 
by  me  princes  rule  ;  and  nobles,  even  all  the  judges 
of  the  earth.  Blessed  are  they  that  keep  my  ways, 
and  blessed  is  the  man  that  heareth  m,e.'  Continue, 
then,  my  Lord  King,  to  exhort  the  young  in  the 
palaces  of  your  highness  to  earnest  pursuit  in 
acquiring  wisdom ;  that  they  may  be  honored  in 
their  old  age,  and  ultimately  enter  into  a  blessed 
immortality.  I  shall  truly,  according  to  my  ability, 
continue  to  sow  in  those  parts  the  seeds  of  wisdom 
among  your  servants ;  remembering  the  command, 
'  In  the  morning  sow  thy  seed,  and  in  the  evening 
withhold  not  thine  hand.'  In  my  youth  I  sowed 
the  seeds  of  learning  in  the  prosperous  seminaries 
of  Britain ;  and  now,  in  my  old  age,  I  am  doing  so 
in  France  without  ceasing,  praying  that  the  grace 
of  God  may  bless  them  in  both  countries."* 

Such  was  the  enthusiasm,  such  the  spirit  of 
bibliomania,  which  actuated  the  monks  of  those 
bookless  days ;  and  which  was  fostered  with  such 
zealous  care  by  Alcuin,  in  the  cloisters  of  St.  Martin 

*  Alcuini,  Oper.  torn.  i.  p.  52.  Ep.  xxxviii.  It  was  written 
about  796. 


BIBLIOMANIA.  183 

of  Tours.  He  appropriated  one  of  the  apartments 
of  the  monastery  for  the  transcription  of  books,  and 
called  it  the  museum,  in  which  constantly  were  em- 
ployed a  numerous  body  of  industrious  scribes :  he 
presided  over  them  himself,  and  continally  exhorted 
them  to  diligence  and  care ;  to  guard  against  the 
inadvertencies  of  unskilful  copyists,  he  wrote  a 
small  work  on  orthography.  We  cannot  estimate 
the  merits  of  this  essay,  for  only  a  portion  of  it  has 
been  preserved  ;  but  in  the  fragment  printed  among 
his  works,  we  can  see  much  that  might  have  been 
useful  to  the  scribes,  and  can  believe  that  it  must 
have  tended  materially  to  preserve  the  purity  of 
ancient  texts.  It  consists  of  a  catalogue  of  words 
closely  resembling  each  other,  and  consequently 
requiring  the  utmost  care  in  transcribing.* 

In  these  pleasing  labors  Alcuin  was  assisted  by 
many  of  the  most  learned  men  of  the  time,  and 
especially  by  Arno,  Archbishop  of  Salzburgh,  in 
writing  to  whom  Alcuin  exclaims,  "  O  that  I  could 
suddenly  translate  my  Abacus,  and  with  my  own 
hands  quickly  embrace  your  fraternity  with  that 
warmth  which  cannot  be  compressed  in  books. 
Nevertheless,  because  I  cannot  conveniently  come, 
I  send  more  frequently  my  unpolished  letters  {rus- 
ticitatis  mece  litteras)  to  thee,  that  they  may  speak 
for  me  instead  of  the  words  of  my  mouth."  This 
Arno,  to  whom  he  thus  affectionately  writes,  was 
no  despicable  scholar ;  he  was  a  true  lover  of  lit- 
erature, and  proved  himself  something  of  an  amator 

*  He  was  also  very  careful  in  instructing  the  scribes  to  punctuate 
with  accuracy,  which  he  deemed  of  great  importance.  See  Ep.  Ixxxv. 
p.  126. 


i84  BIBLIOMANIA. 

librorum^  by  causing  to  be  transcribed  or  bought 
for  his  use,  150  volumes,*  but  about  this  period 
the  bookloving  mania  spread  far  and  wide — the 
Emperor  himself  was  touched  with  the  enthusiasm ; 
for,  besides  his  choice  private  collections,  f  he 
collected  together  the  ponderous  writings  of  the 
holy  fathers,  amounting  to  upwards  of  200  volumes, 
bound  in  a  most  sumptuous  manner,  and  com- 
manded them  to  be  deposited  in  a  public  temple 
and  arranged  in  proper  order,  so  that  those  who 
could  not  purchase  such  treasures  might  be  enabled 
to  feast  on  the  lore  of  the  ancients.  Thus  did 
bibliomania  flourish  in  the  days  of  old. 

But  I  must  not  be  tempted  to  remain  longer  in 
France,  though  the  names  of  many  choice  old  book 
collectors  would  entice  me  to  do  so.  When  I  left 
England,  to  follow  the  steps  of  Alcuin,  I  was 
speaking  of  York,  which  puts  me  in  mind  of  the 
monastery  of  Whitby,  J  in  the  same  shire,  on  the 
banks  of  the  river  Eske.  It  was  founded  by  Hilda, 
the  virgin  daughter  of  Hereric,  nephew  to  King 
Edwin,  about  the  year  680,  who  was  its  first  abbess. 
Having  put  her  monastery  in  regular  order,  Hilda 
set  an  illustrious  example  of  piety  and  virtue,  and 

•  Necrolog.  MS.  Capituli,  Metropolitani  Salisburgensis,  apud 
Froben,  torn.  i.  p.  Ixxxi. 

t  Charlemagne  founded  several  libraries ; — see  Koeler,  Dissert, 
de  Biblio.  Caroli  Mog.  published  in  1727.  Eginhart  mentions  his 
private  collection,  and  it  is  thus  spoken  of  in  the  emperor's  will ; 
"  Similiter  et  de  libris,  quorum  magna  in  bibliotheca  sua  copiam 
congregavit :  statuit  ut  ab  iis  qui  eos  habere  uellet,  justo  pretio  redi- 
meretur,  pretin  in  pauperes  erogaretur."  Echin.  Vita  Caroli,  p.  366, 
edit.  24mo.  1562.  Yet  we  cannot  but  regret  the  dispersion  of  this 
imperial  library. 

X  Formerly  called  Streaneshalch. 


BIBLIOMANIA.  185 

particularly  directed  all  under  her  care  to  a  constant 
reading  of  the  holy  Scriptures.  After  a  long  life 
of  usefulness  and  zeal  she  died  deeply  lamented  by 
the  Saxon  Church,*  an  event  which  many  powerful 
miracles  commemorated. 

In  the  old  times  of  the  Saxons  the  monastery  of 
Whitby  was  renowned  for  its  learning ;  and  many 
of  the  celebrated  ecclesiastics  of  the  day  received 
their  instruction  within  its  walls.  The  most  in- 
teresting literary  anecdote  connected  with  the  good 
lady  Hilda's  abbacy,  is  the  kind  reception  she  gave 
to  the  Saxon  poet  Csedmon,  whose  paraphrase  of 
the  Book  of  Genesis  has  rendered  his  name  im- 
mortal. He  was  wont  to  make  "  pious  and  religious 
verses,  so  that  whatever  was  interpreted  to  him  out 
of  Scripture,  he  soon  after  put  the  same  into  poetical 
expression  of  much  sweetness  and  humility  in  Eng- 
lish, which  was  his  native  language.  By  his  verses 
the  minds  of  many  were  often  excited  to  despise 
the  world  and  to  aspire  to  heaven.  Others  after 
him  attempted  in  the  English  nation  to  compose 
religious  poems,  but  none  could  ever  compare  with 
him, /or  he  did  not  learn  the  art  of  poetry  from 
man  but  from  God."-\  He  was  indeed,  as  the 
venerable  Bede  says,  a  poet  of  nature's  own  teach- 
ing :  originally  a  rustic  herdsman,  the  sublime  gift 
was  bestowed  upon  him  by  inspiration,  or  as  it  is  re- 
corded, in  a  dream.  As  he  slept  an  unknown  being 
appeared,  and  commanded  him  to  sing.  Csed- 
mon hesitated  to  make  the  attempt,  but  the  appari- 
tion retorted,  "  Nevertheless,  thou  shalt  sing — sing 

•  At  the  age  of  66,  Bede,  b.  iv.  cxxiii. 
t  Bede,  b.  iv.  c.  xxiv. 


i86  BIBLIOMANIA, 

the  origin  of  things."  Astonished  and  perplexed, 
our  poet  found  himself  instantaneously  in  posses- 
sion of  the  pleasing  art;  and,  when  he  awoke,  his 
vision  and  the  words  of  his  song  were  so  impressed 
upon  his  memory,  that  he  easily  repeated  them  to 
his  wondering  companions.*  He  hastened  at  day- 
break to  relate  these  marvels  and  to  display  his 
new  found  talents  to  the  monks  of  Whitby,  by 
whom  he  was  joyfully  received,  and  as  they  un- 
folded the  divine  mysteries,  "  The  good  man,''  says 
Bede,  "listened  like  a  clean  animal  ruminating;  and 
his  song  and  his  verse  were  so  winsome  to  hear, 
that  his  teachers  wrote  them  down,  and  learned 
from  his  mouth. "f 

Some  contend  that  an  ancient  manuscript  in  the 
British  Museum  is  the  original  of  this  celebrated 
paraphrase.^  It  is  just  one  of  those  choice  relics 
which  a  bibliomaniac  loves  to  handle,  but  scarcely 
perhaps  bears  evidence  of  antiquity  so  remote.  It 
is  described  in  the  catalogue  as,  "  The  substance  of 
the  Book  of  Genesis,  with  the  Acts  of  Moses  and 
Joshua,  with  brief  notes  and  annotations,  part  in 
Latin  and  part  in  Saxon  by  Bede  and  others." 
The  notes,  if  by  Bede,  would  tend  to  favor  the 
opinion  that  it  is  the  original  manuscript,  or,  at 
any  rate,  coeval  with  the  Saxon  bard.    The  volume, 

*  John  de  Trevisa  says,  **  Caedmon  of  Whitaby  was  inspired  of 
the  Holy  Gost,  and  made  wonder  poisyes  an  Englisch,  meiz  of  al  the 
Storyes  of  Holy  Writ."     MS,  Harleian,  1900,  fol.  43,  a. 

t  Ibid. 

X  Cottonian  Collection  marked  Claudius,  B.  iv.  There  is  another 
MS.  in  the  Bodleian  {Junius  XI.)  It  was  printed  by  Junius  in  1655, 
in  4to.  Sturt  has  engraved  some  of  the  illuminations  in  his  Saxon 
Antiquities,  and  they  were  also  copied  and  published  by  J.  Greene, 
F.  A.  S.,  in  1754,  in  fifteen  plates. 


BIBLIOMANIA.  187 

as  a  specimen  of  calligraphic  art,  reflects  honor 
upon  the  age,  and  is  right  worthy  of  Lady  Hilda's 
monastery.  There  are  312*  fine  velum  pages  in 
this  venerable  and  precious  volume,  nearly  every 
one  of  which  dazzles  with  the  talent  of  the  skilful 
illuminator.  The  initial  letters  are  formed,  with 
singular  taste  and  ingenuity,  of  birds,  beasts,  and 
flowers.  To  give  an  idea  of  the  nature  of  these  pic- 
torial embellishments — which  display  more  splendor 
of  coloring  than  accuracy  of  design — I  may  describe 
the  singular  illumination  adorning  the  sixth  page, 
which  represents  the  birth  of  Eve.  Adam  is  asleep, 
reclining  on  the  grass,  which  is  depicted  as  so  many 
inverted  cones ;  and,  if  we  may  judge  from  the 
appearance  of  our  venerable  forefather,  he  could 
not  have  enjoyed  a  very  comfortable  repose  on  that 
memorable  occasion,  and  the  grass  which  grew  in 
the  Garden  of  Paradise  must  have  been  of  a  very 
stubborn  nature  when  compared  with  the  earth's 
verdure  of  the  present  day;  for  the  weight  of 
Adam  alters  not  the  position  of  the  tender  herb, 
which  supports  his  huge  body  on  their  oxtreme 
summits.  As  he  is  lying  on  the  left  side  Eve  is 
ascending  from  a  circular  aperture  in  his  right ;  nor 
would  the  original,  if  she  bore  any  resemblance  to 
her  monkish  portraiture,  excite  the  envy  or  the 
admiration  of  the  present  age,  or  bear  comparison 
with  her  fair  posterity.  Her  physiognomy  is  any- 
thing but  fascinating,  and  her  figure  is  a  repulsive 
monstrosity,  adorned  with  a  profusion  of  luxurious 
hair  of  a  brilliant  blue ! 

It  is  foreign  to  our  subject  to  enter  into  any 
*  It  is  unfortunately  imperfect  at  the  end,  and  wants  folio  32. 


i88  BIBLIOMANIA. 

analysis  of  the  literary  beauties  of  this  poem ;  let 
it  suffice  that  Caedmon,  the  old  Saxon  herdsman, 
has  been  compared  to  our  immortal  Milton ;  and 
their  names  have  been  coupled  together  when 
speaking  of  a  poet's  genius.*  But  on  other  grounds 
Caedmon  claims  a  full  measure  of  our  praise.  Not 
only  was  he  the  *'  Father  of  Saxon  poetry,"  but  to 
him  also  belongs  the  inestimable  honor  of  being 
the  first  who  attempted  to  render  into  the  vulgar 
tongue  the  beauties  and  mysteries  of  the  Holy 
Scriptures ;  he  unsealed  what  had  hitherto  been  a 
sealed  book ;  his  paraphrase  is  the  first  translation 
of  the  holy  writ  on  record.  So  let  it  not  be  forgot- 
ten that  to  this  Milton  of  old  our  Saxon  ancestors 
were  indebted  for  this  invaluable  treasure.  We  are 
unable  to  trace  distinctly  the  formation  of  the 
monastic  library  of  Whitby.  But  of  the  time  of 
Richard,  elected  abbot  in  the  year  1148,  a  good 
monk,  and  formerly  prior  of  Peterborough,  we 
have  a  catalogue  of  their  books  preserved.     I  would 

*  Take  the  following  as  an  instance  of  the  similarity  of  thought 
between  the  two  poets.  Sharon  Turner  thus  renders  a  portion  of 
Satan's  speech  from  the  Saxon  of  Caedmon  : 

"  Yet  why  should  I  sue  for  his  grace  ? 
Or  bend  to  him  with  any  obedience  ? 
I  may  be  a  God  as  he  is. 
Stand  by  me  strong  companions. " 

Hist.  Anglo  Sax.  vol.  ii.  p.  314. 

The  idea  is  with  Milton : 

To  bow  to  one  for  grace 

With  suppliant  knee,  and  deify  his  power, 
Who  from  the  terror  of  this  arm  so  late 
Doubted  his  empire ;  that  were  low  indeed ! 
That  were  an  ignominy,  and  shame  beneath 
This  downfall ! 

Paradise  Lost,  b.  i. 


BIBLIOMANIA. 


189 


refer  the  reader  to  that  curious  list,*  and  ask  him 
if  it  does  not  manifest  by  its  contents  the  existence 
of  a  more  refined  taste  in  the  cloisters  than  he  gave 
the  old  monks  credit  for.  It  is  true,  the  legends  of 
saints  abound  in  it;  but  then  look  at  the  choice 
tomes  of  a  classic  age,  whose  names  grace  that 
humble  catalogue,  and  remember  that  the  studies 
of  the  Whitby  monks  were  divided  between  the 
miraculous  lives  of  holy  men,  and  the  more  pleasing 
pages  of  the  "  Pagan  Homer,"  the  eloquence  of 
Tully,  and  the  wit  of  Juvenal,  of  whose  subject 
they  seemed  to  have  been  fond ;  for  they  read  also 
the  satires  of  Persius.  I  extract  the  names  of  some 
of  the  authors  contained  in  this  monkish  library : 


Ambrose. 

Plato. 

Rabanus  Maurus. 

Hugo. 
Theodolus. 

Homer. 
Cicero. 

Origen. 
Priscian. 

Aratores. 
Bernard. 

Juvenal. 
Persius. 

Gregory  Nazianzen. 
Josephus. 

Avianus. 

Statius. 

Bede. 

Gratian. 

Sedulus. 

Gildas. 

Odo. 
Gilda. 

Prosper. 
Prudentius. 

Isidore. 
Ruffinus. 

Maximianus. 

Boethius. 

Guido  on  Music. 

Eusebius. 

Donatus. 

Diadema  Monachorum. 

Come,  the  monks  evidently  read  something 
besides  their  Credo,  and  transcribed  something  bet- 
ter than  "monastic  trash."  A  little  taste  for  lit- 
erature and  learning  we  must  allow  they  enjoyed, 
when  they  formed  their  library  of  such  volumes  as 
the  above.  I  candidly  admit,  that  when  I  com- 
menced these  researches  I  had  no  expectations  of 

*  He  will  find  it  in  Charlton's  History  of  Whitby,  4to.  1779, 
p.  113. 


190  BIBLIOMANIA, 

finding  a  collection  of  a  hundred  volumes,  em- 
bracing so  many  choice  works  of  old  Greece  and 
Rome.  It  is  pleasant,  however,  to  trace  these 
workings  of  bibliomania  in  the  monasteries ;  and 
it  is  a  surprise  quite  agreeable  and  delicious  in 
itself  to  meet  with  instances  like  the  present. 

At  a  latter  period  the  monastery  of  Rievall,  in 
Yorkshire,  possessed  an  excellent  library  of  200 
volumes.  This  we  know  by  a  catalogue  of  them, 
compiled  by  one  of  the  monks  about  the  middle  of 
the  fourteenth  century,  and  now  preserved  in  the 
library  of  Jesus  College,  Cambridge.*  A  transcript 
of  this  manuscript  was  made  by  Mr.  Halliwell,  and 
published  in  his  "  Reliqua  Antiqua,"f  from  which 
it  may  be  seen  that  the  Rievall  monastery  contained 
at  that  time  many  choice  and  valuable  works.  The 
numerous  writings  of  Sts.  Augustine,  Bernard,  An- 
selm,  Cyprian,  Origin,  Haimo,  Gregory,  Ambrose, 
Isidore,  Chrysostom,  Bede,  Aldhelm,  Gregory  Na- 
zienzen,  Ailred,  Josephus,  Rabanus  Maurus,  Peter 
Lombard,  Orosius,  Boethius,  Justin,  Seneca,  with 
histories  of  the  church  of  Britain,  of  Jerusalem,  of 
King  Henry,  and  many  others  equally  interesting 
and  costly,  prove  how  industriously  they  used  their 
pens,  and  how  much  they  appreciated  literature  and 
learning.  But  in  the  fourteenth  century  the  in- 
habitants of  the  monasteries  were  very  industrious 
in  transcribing  books  at  a  period  coeval  with  the 
compilation  of  the  Rievall  catalogue,  a  monk  of 
Coventry  church  was  plying  his  pen  with  unceasing 
energy;  John  de  Bruges  wrote  with  his  own  hand 

•  Marked  MS.  N.  B.  17. 

t  Wright  and  Halliwell's  Rel.  Antiq.  vol,  ii.  p.  180. 


BIBLIOMANIA.  191 

thirty-two  volumes  for  the  library  of  the  benedic- 
tine  priory  of  St.  Mary. 

The  reader  will  see  that  there  is  little  among 
them  worthy  of  much  observation.  The  MS. 
begins,  "These  are  the  books  which  John  of 
Bruges,  monk  of  Coventry,  wrote  for  the  Coventry 
church.  Any  who  shall  take  them  away  from  the 
church  without  the  consent  of  the  convent,  let  him 
be  anathema." 

In  primis,  ymnarium  in  grossa  littera. 

Halmo  upon  Isaiah. 

A  Missal  for  the  Infirmary. 

A  Missal. 

Duo  missalia  domini   Prioris  Rogeris,  scilicet  coUectas  cum 

secretis  et  postcommunione. 
A  Benedictional  for  the  use  of  the  same  prior. 
Another  Benedictional  for  the  use  of  the  convent. 
Librum  cartarum. 
Martyrologium,   Rule  of  St.   Benedict   and    Pastoral,   in  one 

volume. 
Liber   cartarum. 

A  Graduale,  with  a  Tropario,  and  a  Processional. 
Psaltar  for  Prior  Roger. 
Palladium  de  Agricultura. 

Librum  experimentorum,  in  quo  ligatur  compotus  Helprici. 
A  book  containing  Compotus  manualis  et  Merlin,  etc. 
An  Ordinal  for  the  Choir. 
Tables  for  the  Martjn-ology. 
Kalendarium  mortuorum. 
Ditto. 

Table  of  Responses. 
Capitular. 

Capitular  for  Prior  Roger. 
A  Reading  Book. 
A  book  of  Decretals. 

*  It  is  printed  in  Hearne's  History  of  Glastonbury,  from  a  MS. 
in  the  Bodleian  Library,  Ed.  Oxon,  1722,  Appendix  x.  p.  291. 


192  BIBLIOMANIA, 

Psalter  for  the  monks  in  the  infirmary. 

Generationes   Veteris  et  Novi   Testamenti ;   ante   scholasticam 

hystoriam  et  ante  Psalterium  domini  Anselmi. 
Pater  noster. 
An  Ordinal. 

Tables  for  Peter  Lombard's  Sentences. 
Tables  for  the  Psalter. 
Book  of  the  Statutes  of  the  Church. 
Verses  on  the  praise  of  the  blessed  Mary. 

The  priory  of  St.  Mary's  was  founded  by 
Leofricke,  the  celebrated  Earl  of  Mercia  and  his 
good  Lady  Godiva,  in  the  year  1042.  "  HoUings- 
head  says  that  this  Earl  Leofricke  was  a  man  of 
great  honor,  wise,  and  discreet  in  all  his  doings. 
His  high  wisdome  and  policie  stood  the  realme  in 
great  steed  whilst  he  lived...  He  had  a  noble  ladie 
to  his  wife  named  Gudwina,  at  whose  earnest  sute 
he  made  the  citie  of  Couentrie  free  of  all  manner 
of  toll  except  horsses,  and  to  haue  that  toll  laid 
downe  also,  his  foresaid  wife  rode  naked  through 
the  middest  of  the  towne  without  other  couerture, 
saue  onlie  her  haire.  Moreouer  partlie  moued  by 
his  owne  deuotion  and  partlie  by  the  persuasion  of 
his  wife,  he  builded  or  beneficiallie  augmented  and 
repared  manie  abbeies  and  churches  as  the  saide 
abbie  or  priorie  at  Couentrie — the  abbeies  of 
Wenlocke,  Worcester,  Stone,  Evesham,  and  Leot, 
besides  Hereford." 

The  church  of  Worcester,  which  the  good  Earl 
had  thus  "beneficiallie  augmented,"  the  Saxon  King 
Offa  had  endowed  with  princely  munificence  before 
him.  In  the  year  780,  during  the  time  of  Abbot 
Tilhere,  or  Gilhere,  Offa  gave  to  the  church 
Croppethorne,     Netherton,     Elmlege     Cuddeshe, 


BIBLIOMANIA.  193 

Cherton,  and  other  lands,  besides  a  "  large  Bible 
with  two  clasps,  made  of  the  purest  gold."*  In  the 
tenth  century  the  library  of  Exeter  Church  was 
sufficiently  extensive  to  require  the  preserving  care 
of  an  amanuensis ;  for  according  to  Dr.  Thomas, 
Bishop  Oswald  granted  in  the  year  985  three  hides 
of  land  at  Bredicot,  one  yardland  at  Ginenqfra,  and 
seven  acres  of  meadow  at  Tiberton,  to  Godinge  a 
monk,  on  condition  of  his  fulfilling  the  duties  of  a 
librarian  to  the  see,  and  transcribing  the  registers 
and  writings  of  the  church.  It  is  said  that  the 
scribe  Godinge  wrote  many  choice  books  for  the 
library.^  I  do  not  find  any  remarkable  book 
donation,  save  now  and  then  a  volume  or  two,  in 
the  annals  of  Worcester  Church  ;  nor  have  I  been 
able  to  discover  any  old  parchment  catalogue  to 
tell  of  the  number  or  rarity  of  their  books  ;  for 
although  probably  most  monasteries  had  one 
compiled,  being  enjoined  to  do  so  by  the  regula- 
tions of  their  order,  they  have  long  ago  been  de- 
stroyed ;  for  when  we  know  that  fine  old  manu- 
scripts were  used  by  the  bookbinders  after  the 
Reformation,  we  can  easily  imagine  how  little  value 
would  be  placed  on  a  mere  catalogue  of  names. 
But  to  return  again  to  Godiva,  that  illustrious 

*  Bibliothecam  optimam  cum  duobus  armillis  ex  auro  purissimo 
fabricatis. — Heming.  Chart,  p.  95. 

t  Thomas's  Survey,  of  Worcester  Church,  4to,  1736,  p.  46. 
The  Scriptorium  of  the  monastery  was  situated  in  the  cloisters,  and 
a  Bible  in  Rennet  College,  Cambridge,  was  written  therein  by  a 
scribe  named  Senatus,  as  we  learn  from  a  note  printed  in  Nasmith's 
Catalogue,  which  proves  it  to  have  been  written  during  the  reign  of 
Henry  II.  It  is  a  folio  MS.  on  vellum,  and  a  fine  specimen  of  the 
talent  of  the  expert  scribe. — See  Nasmith's  Catalogus  Libr.  MSS., 
4to,  Camd.  1777,  p.  31. 


194  BIBLIOMANIA. 

lady  gave  the  monks,  after  the  death  of  her  lord, 
many  landed  possessions,  and  bestowed  upon  them 
the  blessings  of  a  library.* 

Thomas  Cobham,  who  was  consecrated  Bishop 
of  Worcester  in  the  year  131 7,  was  a  great 
'' amator  librorum^'  and  spent  much  time  and 
money  in  collecting  books.  He  was  the  first  who 
projected  the  establishment  of  a  public  library  at 
Oxford,  which  he  designed  to  form  over  the  old 
Congregation  House  in  the  churchyard  of  St. 
Mary's,  but  dying  soon  after  in  the  year  1327,  the 
project  was  forgotten  till  about  forty  years  after, 
when  I  suppose  the  example  of  the  great  biblio- 
maniac Richard  de  Bury  drew  attention  to  the 
matter ;  for  his  book  treasures  were  then  "  deposited 
there,  and  the  scholars  permitted  to  consult  them 
on  certain  conditions."f 

Bishop  Carpenter  built  a  library  for  the  use  of 
the  monastery  of  Exeter  Church,  in  the  year  1461, 
over  the  charnal  house;  and  endowed  it  with  ;^io 
per  annum  as  a  salary  for  an  amanuensis.J  But 
the  books  deposited  there  were  grievously  destroyed 
during  the  civil  wars ;  for  on  the  twenty-fourth  of 
September,  1642,  when  the  army  under  the  Earl  of 

*  Since  writing  the  above,  which  I  gave  on  the  authority  of 
Green  {Hist,  of  Wore.  vol.  i.  p.  79),  backed  with  the  older  one  of 
Thomas  {Survey  Ch.  Wore.  p.  70),  I  have  had  the  opportunity  of 
consulting  the  reference  given  by  them  {Heming,  Chart,  p.  262), 
and  was  somewhat  surprised  to  find  the  words  "  Et  bibliotheeam,  in 
duobus  partibus  divisam"  the  foundation  of  this  pleasing  anecdote. 
^*  Bibliotheeam,"  however,  was  the  Latin  for  a  Bible  in  the  middle 
ages :  so  that  in  fact  the  Lady  Godiva  gave  them  a  Bible  divided 
into  two  parts,  or  volumes. 

t  Chalmer's  Hist,  of  the  Colleges  of  Oxford,  p.  458.  Wood's 
Hist.  Antiq.  of  Oxon,  lib.  ii.  p.  48. 

X  Green's  Hist.  Wore.  p.  79. 


BIBLIOMANIA.  195 

Essex  came  to  Worcester,  they  set  about  "  de- 
stroying the  organ,  breaking  in  pieces  divers  beauti- 
ful windows,  wherein  the  foundation  of  the  church 
was  lively  historified  with  painted  glass ;"  they  also 
"  rifled  the  library,  with  the  records  and  evidences 
of  the  church,  tore  in  pieces  the  Bibles  and  service 
books  pertaining  to  the  quire."*  Sad  desecration  of 
ancient  literature  !  But  the  reader  of  history  will 
sigh  over  many  such  examples. 

The  registers  of  Evesham  Monastery,  near 
Worcester,  speak  of  several  monkish  bibliophiles, 
and  the  bookish  anecdotes  relating  to  them  are 
sufficiently  interesting  to  demand  some  attention 
here.  Ailward,  who  was  abbot  in  the  year  1014, 
gave  the  convent  many  relics  and  ornaments,  and 
what  was  still  better  a  quantity  of  books.*}*  He  was 
afterwards  promoted  to  the  see  of  London,  over 
which  he  presided  many  years;  but  age  and  in- 
firmity growing  upon  him,  he  was  anxious  again  to 
retire  to  Evesham,  but  the  monks  from  some  cause 
or  other  were  unwilling  to  receive  him  back ;  at 
this  he  took  offence,  and  seeking  in  the  monastery 
of  Ramsey  the  quietude  denied  him  there,  he  de- 
manded back  all  the  books  he  had  given  them. if 
His  successor  Mannius  was  celebrated  for  his  skill 
in  the  fine  arts,  and  was  an  exquisite  worker  in 
metals,  besides  an  ingenious  scribe  and  illuminator. 

*  Sir  W.  Dugdale's  View  of  the  Troubles  in  England,  Folio, 
p.  557.  We  can  easily  credit  the  destruction  of  the  organ  and 
painted  windows,  so  obnoxious  to  Puritan  piety ;  but  with  regard  to 
the  Bibles,  we  may  suspect  the  accuracy  of  the  Royalist  writer, 
col.  182. 

t  Symeon  Dunelm.  Tweyed.  Script,  x. 

i  Habingdon,  MSS.  Godwin  de  Prasf,  p.  231. 


196  BIBLIOMANIA. 

He  wrote  and  illuminated  with  his  own  hand,  for 
the  use  of  his  monastery,  a  missal  and  a  large 
Psalter.* 

Walter,  who  was  abbot  in  the  year  1077,  gave 
also  many  books  to  the  library,f  and  among  the 
catalogue  of  sumptuous  treasures  with  which  Regi- 
nald, a  succeeding  abbot,  enriched  the  convent,  a 
great  textus  or  gospels,  with  a  multitude  of  other 
books,  multa  alia  libros,  are  particularly  specified.  J 
Almost  equally  liberal  were  the  choice  gifts  be- 
stowed upon  the  monks  by  Adam  (elected  a.  d. 
1 161);  but  we  find  but  little  in  our  way  among 
them,  except  a  fine  copy  of  the  "  Old  and  New 
Testament  with  a  gloss."  No  mean  gift  I  ween  in 
those  old  days ;  but  one  which  amply  compensated 
for  the  deficiency  of  the  donation  in  point  of  num- 
bers. But  all  these  were  greatly  surpassed  by  a 
monk  whom  it  will  be  my  duty  now  to  introduce  ; 
and  to  an  account  of  whose  life  and  bibliomanical 
propensities,  I  shall  devote  a  page  or  two.  Like 
many  who  spread  a  lustre  around  the  little  sphere 
of  their  own,  and  did  honor,  humbly  and  quietly  to 
the  sanctuary  of  the  church  in  those  Gothic  days, 
he  is  unknown  to  many ;  and  might,  perhaps,  have 
been  entirely  forgotten,  had  not  time  kindly  spared 
a  document  which  testifies  to  his  piety  and  book- 
collecting  industry.  The  reader  will  probably  re- 
collect many  who,  by  their  shining  piety  and  spotless 
life,  maintained  the  purity  of  the  Christian  faith  in 
a  church  surrounded  by  danger  and  ignorance,  and 
many  a  bright  name,  renowned  for  their  virtue  or 

*  Tindal's  Hist,  of  Evesham,  p.  248.  f  !bid.  p.  250. 

X  MS.  Harl.,  No.  3763,  p.  180. 


BIBLIOMANIA.  197 

their  glory  of  arms,  who  flourished  during  the  early 
part  of  the  thirteenth  century ;  but  few  have  heard 
of  a  good  and  humble  monk  named  Thomas  of 
Marleberg.  Had  circumstances  designed  him  for  a 
higher  sphere,  had  affairs  of  state,  or  weighty  duties 
of  an  ecclesiastical  import,  been  guided  by  his  hand, 
his  name  would  have  been  recorded  with  all  the 
flourish  of  monkish  adulation ;  but  the  learning  and 
the  prudence  of  that  lowly  monk  was  confined  to 
the  little  world  of  Evesham ;  and  when  his  earthly 
manes  were  buried  beneath  the  cloisters  within  the 
old  convent  walls,  his  name  and  good  deeds  were 
forgotten  by  the  world,  save  in  the  hearts  of  his 
fraternity. 

"  But  past  is  all  his  fame.     The  very  spot 
Where  many  a  time  he  triumph'd,  is  forgot." 

In  a  manuscript  in  the  Cotton  Library  there  is 
a  document  called  "  The  good  deeds  of  Prior 
Thomas,"  from  which  the  following  facts  have 
been  extracted.* 

From  this  interesting  memorial  of  his  labors, 
we  learn  that  Thomas  had  acquired  some  repute 
among  the  monks  for  his  great  knowledge  of  civil 
and  canon  law ;  so  that  when  any  difficulty  arose 
respecting  the  claims  or  privileges  of  the  monastery, 
or  when  any  important  matter  was  to  be  transacted, 
his  advice  was  sought  and  received  with  deference 
and  respect.  Thus  three  years  after  his  admission 
the  bishop  of  Worcester  intimated  his  intention  of 

*  MS.  Cot.  Vesp.  b.  xxiv.  It  is  printed  in  Latin  in  Nash's 
Worcestershire,  vol.  i,  p.  419,  and  translated  in  TindaVs  Hist,  of 
Worcs.  p.  24,  all  of  which  I  have  used  with  Dugdale^s  Monast.  vol. 
ii.  p.  5. 


198  BIBLIOMANIA. 

paying  the  monastery  a  visitation  ;  a  practice  which 
the  bishops  of  that  see  had  not  enforced  since  the 
days  of  abbot  Alurie.  The  abbot  and  convent 
however  considered  themselves  free  from  the  juris- 
diction of  the  bishop ;  and  acting  on  the  advice  of 
Thomas  of  Marleberg,  they  successfully  repulsed 
him.  The  affair  was  quite  an  event,  and  seems  to 
have  caused  much  sensation  among  them  at  the 
time  ;  and  is  mentioned  to  show  with  what  esteem 
Thomas  was  regarded  by  his  monkish  brethren. 
After  a  long  enumeration  of  **  good  works "  and 
important  benefactions,  such  as  rebuilding  the  tower 
and  repairing  the  convent,  we  are  told  that  "  In  the 
second  year  of  Randulp's  abbacy,  Thomas,  then 
dean,  went  with  him  to  Rome  to  a  general  council, 
where,  by  his  prudence  and  advice,  a  new  arrange- 
ment in  the  business  of  the  convent  rents  was  con- 
firmed, and  many  other  useful  matters  settled." 
Here  I  am  tempted  to  refer  to  the  arrangements^ 
for  they  offer  pleasing  illustrations  of  the  monk  as 
an  '"'' amator  Izbrorum."  Mark  how  his  thoughts 
dwelt — even  when  surrounded  by  those  high  digni- 
taries of  the  church,  and  in  the  midst  of  that  im- 
portant council — on  the  library  and  the  scriptorium 
of  his  monastery. 

**  To  the  Prior  belongs  the  tythes  of  Beningar  the 
both  great  and  small,  to  defray  the  expenses  of 
procuring  parchm,ent,  and  to  procure  ma7iu- 
scripts  for  transcription.'' 

And  in  another  clause  it  is  settled  that 

"  To  the  Office  of  the  Precentor  belongs  the  Manner 
of  Hampton,  from  which  he  will  receive  five 


BIBLIOMANIA.  199 

shillings  annually,  besides  ten  and  eightpence 
from  the  tythes  of  Stokes  and  Alcester,  with 
which  he  is  to  find  all  the  ink  and  parchment 
for  the  Scribes  of  the  Monastery,  colours  for 
illuminating,  and  all  that  is  necessary  for  bind- 
ing the  books'"^ 

Pleasing  traits  are  these  of  his  bookloving  pas- 
sion ;  and  doubtless  under  his  guidance  the  convent 
library  grew  and  flourished  amazingly.  But  let  us 
return  to  the  account  of  his  "good  works." 

"  Returning  from  Rome  after  two  years  he  was 
elected  sacrist.  He  then  made  a  reading-desk 
behind  the  choir,f  which  was  much  wanted  in  the 
church,  and  appointed  stated  readings  to  be  held 
near  the  tomb  of  Saint  Wilsius...  Leaving  his 
office  thus  rich  in  good  works,  he  was  then  elected 
prior.  In  this  office  he  buried  his  predecessor, 
Prior  John,  in  a  new  mausoleum ;  and  also  John, 
surnamed  Dionysius ;  of  the  latter  of  whom  Prior 
Thomas  was  accustomed  to  say,  '  that  he  had  never 
known  any  man  who  so  perfectly  performed  every 
kind  of  penance  as  he  did  for  more  than  thirty 
years,  in  fasting  and  in  prayer;  in  tears  and  in 
watchings ;  in  cold  and  in  corporeal  inflictions ;  in 
coarseness  and  roughness  of  clothing,  and  in  denying 
himself  bodily  comforts,  far  more  than  any  other  of 

*  MS.  Cottonian  Augustus II.  No.  11.  "Ex  his  debet  invenire 
praecentor  incaustum  omnibus  scriptoribus  monasterii ;  et  Pergame- 
num  ad  brevia,  et  colores  ad  illuminandum,  et  necessaria  ad  legan- 
dum  libros."     See  Dugdale's  Monast.  vol.  ii.  p.  24. 

t  After  the  elapse  of  so  many  years,  the  research  of  the  an- 
tiquarian has  brought  this  desk  to  light;  an  account  of  it  will  be 
found  in  the  Archeologia,  vol.  xvii.  p.  278. 


200  BIBLIOMANIA. 

the  brethren;  all  of  which  he  rather  dedicated  in 
good  purposes  and  to  the  support  of  the  poor." 

Thus  did  many  an  old  monk  live,  practising  all 
this  with  punctilious  care  as  the  essence  of  a  holy 
life,  and  resting  upon  the  fallacy  that  these  cruel 
mortifyings  of  the  flesh  would  greatly  facilitate  the 
acquisition  of  everlasting  ease  and  joy  in  a  better 
world ;  as  if  God  knew  not,  better  than  themselves, 
what  chastisements  and  afflictions  were  needful  for 
them.  We  may  sigh  with  pain  over  such  instances 
of  mistaken  piety  and  fanatical  zeal  in  all  ages  of 
the  church ;  yet  with  all  their  privations,  and  with 
all  their  macerations  of  the  flesh,  there  was  a  vast 
amount  of  human  pride  mingled  with  their  humilia- 
tion. But  He  who  sees  into  the  hearts  of  all — 
looking  in  his  benevolence  more  at  the  intention 
than  the  outward  form,  may  perhaps  sometimes 
find  in  it  the  workings  of  a  true  christian  piety,  and 
so  reward  it  with  his  love.  Let  us  trust  so  in  the 
charity  of  our  faith,  and  proceed  to  notice  that  por- 
tion of  the  old  record  which  is  more  intimately 
connected  with  our  subject.    We  read  that 

**  Thomas  had  brought  with  him  to  the  convent, 
on  his  entering,  many  books,  of  both  canon  and 
civil  law ;  as  well  as  the  books  by  which  he  had 
regulated  the  schools  of  Oxford  and  Exeter  before 
he  became  a  monk.  He  likewise  had  one  book  of 
Democritus;  and  the  book  of  Antiparalenion,  a 
gradual  book,  according  to  Constantine ;  Isidore's 
Divine  Offices,  and  the  Quadrimum  of  Isidore ; 
Tully's  de  Amicitia ;  Tully  de  Senectute  et  de 
Paradoxis;  Lucan,  Juvenal,  and  many  other  authors, 
et  multos  alios  auctores,  with  a  great  number  of 


BIBLIOMANIA.  201 

sermons,  with  many  writings  on  theological  ques- 
tions ;  on  the  art  and  rules  of  grammar  and  the 
book  of  accents.  After  he  was  prior  he  made  a 
great  breviary,  better  than  any  at  that  time  in  the 
monastery,  with  Haimo,  on  the  Apocalypse,  and  a 
book  containing  the  lives  of  the  patrons  of  the 
church  of  Evesham ;  with  an  account  of  the  deeds 
of  all  the  good  and  bad  monks  belonging  to  the 
church,  in  one  volume.  He  also  wrote  and  bound 
up  the  same  lives  and  acts  in  another  volume 
separately.  He  made  also  a  great  Psalter,  magnum 
psalterium,  superior  to  any  contained  in  the  monas- 
tery, except  the  glossed  ones.  He  collected  and 
wrote  all  the  necessary  materials  for  four  anti- 
phoners,  with  their  musical  notes,  himself;  except 
what  the  brothers  of  the  monastery  transcribed  for 
him.  He  also  finished  many  books  that  William 
of  Lith,  of  pious  memory,  commenced — the  Mar- 
terologium,  the  Exceptio  Missae,  and  some  excel- 
lent commentaries  on  the  Psalter  and  Communion 
of  the  Saints  in  the  old  antiphoners.  He  also 
bought  the  four  Gospels,  with  glosses,  and  Isaiah 
and  Ezekiel,  also  glossed;*  the  Pistillse  upon  Mat- 
thew ;  some  Allegories  on  the  Old  Testament ;  the 
Lamentations  of  Jeremiah,  with  a  gloss ;  the  Ex- 
position of  the  Mass,  according  to  Pope  Innocent; 
and  the  great  book  of  Alexander  Necham,  which  is 
called  Corrogationes  Promethea  de  partibus  veteris 
testamenti  et  novcB...  He  also  caused  to  be  tran- 
scribed in  large  letters  the  book  concerning  the 
offices  of  the  abbey,  from  the  Purification  of  St. 

*  "  Emit  etiam  quator  evangelia  glosata,  et  Yaiam  et  Ezechielem 
glossatos." 


202  BIBLIOMANIA. 

Mary  to  the  Feast  of  Easter ;  the  prelections  re- 
specting Easter  ;  Pentecost,  and  the  blessings  at  the 
baptismal  fonts.  He  also  caused  a  volume,  con- 
taining the  same  works,  to  be  transcribed,  but  in  a 
smaller  hand ;  all  of  which  the  convent  had  not 
before.  He  made  also  the  tablet  for  the  locutory 
in  the  chapel  of  St.  Anne,  towards  the  west.  After 
the  altar  of  St.  Mary  in  the  crypts  had  been  des- 
poiled by  thieves  of  its  books  and  ornaments,  to 
the  value  of  ten  pounds,  he  contributed  to  their 
restoration." 

Thomas  was  equally  liberal  in  other  matters. 
His  whole  time  and  wealth  were  spent  in  rebuild- 
ing and  repairing  the  monastery  and  adding  to  its 
comforts  and  splendor.  He  had  a  great  venera- 
tion for  antiquity,  and  was  especially  anxious  to  re- 
store those  parts  which  were  dilapidated  by  time  ; 
the  old  inscriptions  on  the  monuments  and  altars 
he  carefully  re-inscribed.  It  is  recorded  that  he  re- 
newed the  inscription  on  the  great  altar  himself, 
without  the  aid  of  a  book,  sine  libro ;  which  was 
deemed  a  mark  of  profound  learning  in  my  lord 
abbot  by  his  monkish  surbordinates. 

With  this  I  conclude  my  remarks  on  Thomas 
of  Marleberg,  leaving  these  extracts  to  speak  for 
him.  It  is  pleasing  to  find  that  virtue  so  great, 
and  industry  so  useful  met  with  its  just  reward  ;  and 
that  the  monks  of  Evesham  proved  how  much  they 
appreciated  such  talents,  by  electing  him  their  ab- 
bot, in  1229,  which,  for  seven  years  he  held  with 
becoming  piety  and  wisdom. 

The  annals  of  the  monastery*  testify  that  "In 

*  Harleian  MSS.,  No.  3763. 


BIBLIOMANIA.  203 

the  year  of  our  Lord  one  thousand  three  hundred 
and  ninety-two,  and  the  fifteenth  of  the  reign  of 
King  Richard  the  Second,  on  the  tenth  calends  of 
May,  died  the  venerable  Prior  Nicholas  Hereford, 
of  pious  memory,  who,  as  prior  of  the  church  of 
Evesham,  lived  a  devout  and  religious  life  for 
forty  years."  He  held  that  office  under  three  suc- 
ceeding abbots,  and  filled  it  with  great  honor  and 
industry.  He  was  a  dear  lover  of  books,  and  spent 
vast  sums  in  collecting  together  his  private  library, 
amounting  to  more  than  100  volumes ;  some  of 
these  he  wrote  with  his  own  hand,  but  most  of 
them  he  bought  emit.  A  list  of  these  books  is 
given  in  the  Harleian  Register,  and  many  of  the 
volumes  are  described  as  containing  a  number  of 
tracts,  bound  up  in  one,  cum  aliis  tractatibus  in 
eodem,  volumine.  Some  of  these  display  the  indus- 
try of  his  pen,  and  silently  tell  us  of  his  Christian 
piety.  Among  those  remarkable  for  their  bulk,  it 
is  pleasurable  to  observe  a  copy  of  the  Holy  Scrip- 
tures, which  was  doubtless  a  comfort  to  the  vener- 
able prior  in  the  last  days  of  his  green  old  age  ; 
and  which  probably  guided  him  in  the  even  tenor 
of  that  devout  and  religious  life,  for  which  he  was 
so  esteemed  by  the  monks  of  Evesham.  He  pos- 
sessed also  some  works  of  Bernard  Augustin,  and 
Boethius,  whose  Consolation  of  Philosophy  few 
book-collectors  of  the  middle  ages  were  without. 
To  many  of  the  books  the  prices  he  gave  for  them, 
or  at  which  they  were  then  valued,  are  affixed  :  a 
'' Summa  Prosdicantium."  is  valued  at  eight  marks, 
and  a  "  Burley  super  Politices  "  at  seven  marks.  We 
may  suspect  monk  Nicholas  of  being  rather  a  curi- 


204  BIBLIOMANIA. 

ous  collector  in  his  way,  for  we  find  in  his  library 
some  interesting  volumes  of  popular  literature. 
He  probably  found  much  pleasure  in  perusing  his 
copy  of  the  marvelous  tale  of  "  Beufys  of  Hamp- 
ton," and  the  romantic  "  Mort  d' Arthur,"  both 
sufficiently  interesting  to  relieve  the  monotonous 
vigils  of  the  monastery.  But  I  must  not  dwell 
longer  on  the  monastic  bibliophiles  of  Evesham, 
other  libraries  and  bookworms  call  for  some  notice 
from  my  pen. 


CHAPTER  IX. 


Old  Glastonbury   Abbey. — Its   Library. — John   of 
Taunton.  — Richard       Whiting. — Malmsbury. — 
Bookish  Monks  of  Gloucester  Abbey. — Leofric  of 
Exeter  and  his  private  library. — Peter  of  Blots. 
Extracts  from  his  letters. — Proved  to  have  been  a 
great  classical  student ^  etc.,  etc. 

HE  fame  of  Glastonbury  Abbey 
will  attract  the  steps  of  the 
western  traveller  ;  and  if  he  pos- 
sess the  spirit  of  an  antiquary,  his 
eye  will  long  dwell  on  those  muti- 
lated fragments  of  monkish  archi- 
tecture. The  bibliophile  will 
regard  it  with  still  greater  love  ;  for,  in  its  day, 
it  was  one  of  the  most  eminent  repositories 
of  those  treasures  which  it  is  his  province  to 
collect.  For  more  than  ten  hundred  years  that 
old  fabric  has  stood  there,  exciting  in  days  of 
remote  antiquity  the  veneration  of  our  pious 
forefathers,  and  in  modern  times  the  admiration 
of  the  curious.  Pilgrim !  tread  lightly  on  that 
hallowed   ground  !  sacred   to   the  memory  of  the 


2o6  BIBLIOMANIA. 

most  learned  and  illustrious  of  our  Saxon  ancestry. 
The  bones  of  princes  and  studious  monks  closely 
mingle  with  the  ruins  which  time  has  caused,  and 
bigotry  helped  to  desecrate.  Monkish  tradition 
claims,  as  the  founder  of  Glastonbury  Abbey,  St. 
Joseph  of  Arimathea,  who,  sixty-three  years  after 
the  incarnation  of  our  Lord,  came  to  spread  the 
truths  of  the  Gospel  over  the  island  of  Britain. 
Let  this  be  how  it  may,  we  leave  it  for  more  cer- 
tain data. 

After,  says  a  learned  antiquary,  its  having  been 
built  by  St.  Davis,  Archbishop  of  Menevia,  and 
then  again  restored  by  "  twelve  well  affected  men 
in  the  north  ;"  it  was  entirely  pulled  down  by  Ina, 
king  of  the  West  Saxons,  who  "  new  builded  the 
abbey  of  Glastonburie*  in  a  fenny  place  out  of  the 
way,  to  the  end  the  monks  mought  so  much  the 
more  give  their  mindes  to  heavenly  thinges,  and 
chiefely  use  the  contemplation  meete  for  men  of 
such  profession.  This  was  the  fourth  building  of 
that  monasterie*""!"  The  king  completed  his  good 
work  by  erecting  a  beautiful  chapel,  garnished  with 
numerous  ornaments  and  utensils  of  gold  and 
silver ;  and  among  other  costly  treasures,  William 
of  Malmsbury  tells  us  that  twenty  pounds  and 
sixty  marks  of  gold  was  used  in  making  a  cooper- 
toria  for  a  book  of  the  Gospels.  J 

*  See  Speed's  Chron.  p.  228.  Samme's  Antiq.  p.  578. 

t  Stowe's  Annales,  4to.  1605,  p.  97.  See  also  Hearne's  Hist. 
Glastonbury. 

X  Will.  Malm.  ap.  Gale  Script.  311. — Coopertoria  Librorum 
Evangelii.  For  many  other  instances  of  binding  books  in  gold,  and 
sometimes  with  costly  gems,  I  refer  the  reader  to  Du  Cange  verb- 
Capsae,  and  to  Mr.  Maitland's  Dark  Ages. 


BIBLIOMANIA,  207 

Would  that  I  had  it  in  my  power  to  write  the 
Hterary  history  of  Glastonbury  Abbey ;  to  know 
what  the  monks  of  old  there  transcribed  would  be 
to  acquire  the  history  of  learning  in  those  times ; 
for  there  was  little  worth  reading  in  the  literature 
of  the  day  that  was  not  copied  by  those  industri- 
ous scribes.  But  if  our  materials  will  not  enable 
us  to  do  this,  we  may  catch  a  glimpse  of  their  well 
stored  shelves  through  the  kindness  and  care  of 
William  Britone  the  Librarian,  who  compiled  a 
work  of  the  highest  interest  to  the  biographer.  It 
is  no  less  than  a  catalogue  of  the  books  contained 
in  the  common  library  of  the  abbey  in  the  year 
one  thousand  two  hundred  and  forty-eight.  Four 
hundred  choice  volumes  comprise  this  fine  collec- 
tion ;*  and  will  not  the  reader  be  surprised  to  find 
among  them  a  selection  of  the  classics,  with  the 
chronicles,  poetry,  and  romantic  productions  of 
the  middle  ages,  besides  an  abundant  store  of  the 
theological  writings  of  the  primitive  Church.  But 
I  have  not  transcribed  a  large  proportion  of  this 
list,  as  the  extracts  given  from  other  monastic  cata- 
logues may  serve  to  convey  an  idea  of  their  nature ; 
but  I  cannot  allow  one  circumstance  connected 
with  this  old  document  to  pass  without  remark.  I 
would  draw  the  reader's  attention  to  the  fine  bibles 
which  commence  the  list,  and  which  prove  that  the 
monks  of  Glastonbury  Abbey  were  fond  and  de- 
voted students  of  the  Bible.     It  begins  with — 

Bibliotheca  una  in  duobus  voluminibus. 
Alia  Bibliotheca  integra  vetusta,  set  legibilis. 

*  Warton  says,  that  this  library  was  at  the  time  the  ^^  richest  in 
England.''''     In  this,  however,  he  was  mistaken. 


208  BIBLIOMANIA. 

Bibliotheca  integrge  minoris  litterae. 

Dimidia  pars  Bibliothecse  incipiens  ^  Psalterio,  vetusta. 

Bibliotheca  magna  versificata. 

Alia  versificata  in  duobus  voluminibus. 

Bibliotheca  tres  versificata.* 

But  besides  these,  the  library  contained  numerous 
detached  books  and  many  copies  of  the  Gospels, 
an  ample  collection  of  the  fathers,  and  the  contro- 
versal  writings  of  the  middle  ages ;  and  among 
many  others,  the  following  classics — 

Aristotle.  TuUy.  Marcianus. 

Livy.  Boethius.  Horace. 

Orosius.  Plato.  Priscian. 

Sallust.  Isagoge  of  Porphyry.  Prosper. 

Donatus.  Prudentius.  Aratores. 

Sedulus.  Fortuanus.  Claudian. 

Virgil's  ^neid.  Persius.  Juvenal. 

Virgil's  Georgics.  Pompeius.  Cornutus. 

Virgil's  Bucolics.  Isidore, 

-^sop.  Smaragdius. 

I  must  not  omit  to  mention  that  John  de  Taun- 
ton, a  monk  and  an  enthusiastic  amator  librorum, 
and  who  was  elected  abbot  in  the  year  1271, 
collected  forty  choice  volumes,  and  gave  them  to 
the  library,  dedit  librario,  of  the  abbey ;  no  mean 
gift,  I  ween,  in  the  thirteenth  century.  They 
included — 

Questions  on  the  Old  and  New  Law. 

St.  Augustine  upon  Genesis. 

Ecclesiastical  Dogmas. 

St.  Bernard's  Enchiridion. 

St.  Bernard's  Flowers. 

Books  of  Wisdom,  with  a  Gloss. 

Postil's  upon  Jeremiah  and  the  lesser  Prophets. 

Concordances  to  the  Bible. 

•  John  of  Glast.  p.  423. 


BIBLIOMANIA.  209 

Postil's  of  Albertus  upon  Matthew,  and  the  Lamentations  of 

Jeremiah  and  others,  in  one  volume. 
Postil's  upon  Mark. 
Postil's  upon  John,  with  a  Discourse  on  the  Epistles  throughout 

the  year. 
Brother  Thomas  Old  and  New  Gloss. 
Morabilius  on  the  Gospels  and  Epistles. 
St.  Augustine  on  the  Trinity. 
Epistles  of  Paul  glossed. 
St.  Augustine's  City  of  God. 
Kylwardesby  upon  the  Letter  of  the  Sentences. 
Questions  concerning  Crimes. 
Perfection  of  the  Spiritual  Life. 
Brother  Thomas'  Sum  of  Divinity,  in  four  volumes. 
Decrees  and  Decretals. 
A  Book  of  Perspective. 
Distinctions  of  Maurice. 
Books  of  Natural  History,  in  two  volumes. 
Book  on  the  Properties  of  Things.* 

Subsequent  to  this,  in  the  time  of  one  book- 
loving  abbot,  an  addition  of  forty-nine  volumes  was 
made  to  the  collection  by  his  munificence  and  the 
diligence  of  his  scribes ;  and  time  has  allowed  the 
modern  bibliophile  to  gaze  on  a  catalogue  of  these 
treasures.  I  wish  the  monkish  annalist  had  re- 
corded the  life  of  this  early  bibliomaniac,  but 
unfortunately  we  know  little  of  him.  But  they 
were  no  mean  nor  paltry  volumes  that  he  tran- 
scribed. It  is  with  pleasure  I  see  the  catalogue 
commenced  by  a  copy  of  the  Holy  Scriptures;  and 
the  many  commentaries  upon  them  by  the  fathers 
of  the  church  enumerated  after  it,  prove  my  Lord 
Abbot  to  have  been  a  diligent  student  of  the  Bible. 
Nor  did  he  seek  God  alone  in  his  written  word ; 

*  John   of  Glastonbury    Edt.,    Hearne,    Oxon,    1726,   p.    451. 
Steven's  Additions  to  Dugdale,  vol.  i.  p.  447. 


210  BIBLIOMANIA. 

but  wisely  understood  that  his  Creator  spoke  to 
him  also  by  visible  works ;  and  probably  loved  to 
observe  the  great  wisdom  and  design  of  his  God  in 
the  animated  world;  for  a  Pliny's  Natural  History 
stands  conspicuous  on  the  list,  as  the  reader  will 
perceive. 

The  Bible. 

Pliny's  Natural  History. 

Cassiodorus  upon  the  Psalms. 

Three  great  Missals. 

Two  Reading  Books. 

A  Breviary  for  the  Infirmary. 

Jerome  upon  Jeremiah  and  Isaiah. 

Origen  upon  the  Old  Testament. 

Origen's  Homihes. 

Origen  upon  the  Epistle  of  St.  Paul  to  the  Romans. 

Jerome  upon  the  Epistles  to  the  Galatians,  to  Ephesians,  to  Titus, 

and  to  Philemon. 
Lives  of  the  Fathers. 
Collations  of  the  Fathers. 
Breviary  for  the  Hospital. 
An  Antiphon. 
Pars  una  Moralium. 
Cyprian's  Works. 
Register. 

Liber  dictus  Paradisus. 
Jerome  against  Jovinian. 
Ambrose  against  Novatian. 
Seven  Volumes  of  the  Passions  of  the  Saints  for  the  circle  of  the 

whole  year. 
Lives  of  the  Caesars. 
Acts  of  the  Britons. 
Acts  of  the  English. 
Acts  of  the  Franks. 
Pascasius. 

Radbert  on  the  Body  and  Blood  of  the  Lord. 
Book  of  the  Abbot  of  Clarevalle  de  Atnando  Deo. 
Hugo  de  S.  Victore  de  duodecim  gradibus  Humilitatis  et  de 

Oratione. 


BIBLIOMANIA.  211 

Physiomania  Lapedarum  et  Liber  Petri  Alsinii  in  uno  volumine. 

Rhetoric,  two  volumes. 

Quintilian  de  Causes,  in  one  volume. 

Augustine  upon  the  Lord's  Prayer  and  upon  the  Psalm  Miserero 

mei  Deus. 
A  Benedictional. 
Decreta  Cainotensis  Episcopi, 
Jerome  upon  the  Twelve  Prophets,  and  upon  the  Lamentations 

of  Jeremiah. 
Augustine  upon  the  Trinity. 
Augustine  upon  Genesis. 
Isidore's  Etymology. 
Paterius. 

Augustine  on  the  Words  of  our  Lord. 
Hugo  on  the  Sacraments. 
Cassinus  on  the  Incarnation  of  our  Lord. 
Anselm's  Cui  Deus  Homo.* 

The  reader,  I  think,  will  allow  that  the  catalogue 
enumerates  but  little  unsuitable  for  a  christian's 
study;  he  may  not  admire  the  principles  contained 
in  some  of  them,  or  the  superstition  with  which 
many  of  them  are  loaded ;  but  after  all  there  were 
but  few  volumes  among  them  from  which  a  Bible 
reading  monk  might  not  have  gleaned  something 
good  and  profitable.  These  books  were  transcribed 
about  the  end  of  the  thirteenth  century,  after  the 
catalogue  of  the  monastic  library  mentioned  above 
was  compiled. 

Walter  Taunton,  elected  in  the  year  1322,  gave 
to  the  library  several  volumes  ;  and  his  successor, 
Adam  Sodbury,f  elected  in  the  same  year,  increased 

*  Printed  in  Tanner's  Notitia  Monasiica,  8vo.  Edit.  1695,  p.  75, 
and  in  Hearne's  History  of  Glastonbury,  p.  141 ;  but  both  these 
works  are  scarce,  and  I  have  thought  it  worth  reprinting;  the  reader 
will  perceive  that  I  have  given  some  of  the  items  in  English — the 
original  of  course  is  in  Latin. 

t  John  of  Glas.  p.  262. 


212  BIBLIOMANIA. 

it  with  a  copy  of  the  whole  Bible,*  a  Scholastic 
history,  Lives  of  Saints,  a  work  on  the  Properties 
of  Things,  two  costly  Psalters,  and  a  most  beauti- 
fully bound  Benedictional. 

But  doubtless  many  a  bookworm  nameless  in 
the  page  of  history,  dwelled  within  those  walls 
apart  from  worldly  solicitude  and  strife ;  relieving 
what  would  otherwise  have  been  an  insupportable 
monotony,  with  sweet  converse,  with  books,  or  the 
avocations  of  a  scribe. 

Well,  years  rolled  on,  and  this  fair  sanctuary 
remained  in  all  its  beauty,  encouraging  the  trembling 
christian,  and  fostering  with  a  mother's  care  the 
literature  and  learning  of  the  time.  Thus  it  stood 
till  that  period,  so  dark  and  unpropitious  for 
monkish  ascendency,  when  Protestant  fury  ran  wild, 
and  destruction  thundered  upon  the  heads  of  those 
poor  old  monks !  A  sad  and  cruel  revenge  for 
enlightened  minds  to  wreck  on  mistaken  piety  and 
superstitious  zeal.  How  widely  was  the  fine  library 
scattered  then.  Even  a  few  years  after  its  dissolu- 
tion, when  Leland  spent  some  days  exploring  the 
book  treasures  reposing  there,  it  had  been  broken 
up,  and  many  of  them  lost ;  yet  still  it  must  have 
been  a  noble  library,  for  he  tells  us  that  it  was 
"  scarcely  equalled  in  all  Britain ;"  and  adds,  in  the 
spirit  of  a  true  bibliomaniac,  that  he  no  sooner 
passed  the  threshold  than  the  very  sight  of  so 
many  sacred  remains  of  antiquity  struck  him  with 
awe  and  astonishment.  The  reader  will  naturally 
wish  that  he  had  given  us  a  list  of  what  he  found 
there  ;    but   he  merely  enumerates  a  selection  of 

*  Librario  dedit.  bibliam  preciosam. — John  of  Glast.  p.  262. 


BIBLIOMANIA,  213 

thirty-nine,  among  which  we  find  a  Grammatica 
Eriticis,  formerly  belonging  to  Saint  Dunstan ;  a 
life  of  Saint  Wilfrid ;  a  Saxon  version  of  Orosius, 
and  the  writings  of  William  of  Malmsbury.*  The 
antiquary  will  now  search  in  vain  for  any  vestige  of 
the  abbey  library ;  even  the  spot  on  which  it  stood 
is  unknown  to  the  curious. 

No  christian,  let  his  creed  be  what  it  may,  who 
has  learnt  from  his  master  the  principles  of  charity 
and  love,  will  refuse  a  tear  to  the  memory  of 
Richard  Whiting,  the  last  of  Glastonbury's  abbots. 
Poor  old  man  !  Surely  those  white  locks  and  tot- 
tering limbs  ought  to  have  melted  a  Christian 
heart ;  but  what  charity  or  love  dwelt  within  the 
soul  of  that  rapacious  monarch  ?  Too  old  to  re- 
linquish his  long  cherished  superstitions ;  too  firm 
to  renounce  his  religious  principles.  Whiting  offered 
a  firm  opposition  to  the  reformation.  The  fury  of 
the  tyrant  Henry  was  aroused,  and  that  grey  headed 
monk  was  condemned  to  a  barbarous  death.  As  a 
protestant  I  blush  to  write  it,  yet  so  it  was ;  after  a 
hasty  trial,  if  trial  it  can  be  called,  he  was  dragged 
on  a  hurdle  to  a  common  gallows  erected  on  Torr 
Hill,  and  there,  in  the  face  of  a  brutal  mob,  with 
two  of  his  companion  monks,  was  he  hung !  Pro- 
testant zeal  stopped  not  here,  for  when  life  had 
fled  they  cut  his  body  down,  and  dividing  it  into 
quarters,  sent  one  to  each  of  the  four  principal 
towns ;  and  as  a  last  indignity  to  that  mutilated 
clay,  stuck  his  head  on  the  gate  of  the  old  abbey, 
over  which  he  had  presided  with  judicious  care  in 

*  Among  them  was  a  "Dictionarum  Latine  et  Saxonicum." — 
Leland  Collect,  iii.  p.  153. 


214  BIBLIOMANIA. 

the  last  days  of  his  troubled  life.  It  was  Whiting's 
wish  to  bid  adieu  in  person  to  his  monastery,  in 
which  in  more  prosperous  times  he  had  spent  many 
a  quiet  hour;  it  is  said  that  even  this,  the  dying 
prayer  of  that  poor  old  man,  they  refused  to 
grant.* 

On  viewing  the  ruins  of  Glastonbury  Abbey, 
so  mournful  to  look  upon,  yet  so  splendid  in  its 
decay,  we  cannot  help  exclaiming  with  Michael 
Dayton, — 

"  On  whom  for  this  sad  waste,  should  justice  lay  the  crime." 

Whilst  in  the  west  we  cannot  pass  unnoticed  the 
monastery  of  Malmsbury,  one  of  the  largest  in 
England,  and  which  possessed  at  one  time  an 
extensive  and  valuable  library;  but  it  was  sadly 
ransacked  at  the  Reformation,  and  its  vellum 
treasures  sold  to  the  bakers  to  heat  their  stoves,  or 
applied  to  the  vilest  use;  not  even  a  catalogue  was 
preserved  to  tell  the  curious  of  a  more  enlightened 
age,  what  books  the  old  monks  read  there ;  but 
perhaps,  and  the  blood  runs  cold  as  the  thought 
arises  in  the  mind,  a  perfect  Livy  was  among  them, 
for  a  rare  amator  librorum  belonging  to  this  monas- 
tery, quotes  one  of  the  lost  Decades.f  I  allude  to 
William  of  Malmsbury,  one  of  the  most  enthusiastic 
bibliomaniacs  of  his  age.  From  his  youth  he  dwelt 
within  the  abbey  walls,  and  received  his  education 

*  Leland,  in  his  MSS.  preserved  in  the  Bodleian  Library,  calls 
Whiting  '^^  Homo  sane  candidissimus  et  amicus  mens  singularis"  but 
he  afterwards  scored  the  line  with  his  pen.  See  Arch  Bodl.  A.  Dug- 
dale  Monast.  vol.  i.  p.  6. 

t  See  Hume's  Hist.  Engl.;  Moffat's  Hist,  of  Malmsbury,  p.  223, 
and  Will.  Malms.  Novelise  Hist.  lib.  ii.;  Sharpe's  translation,  p.  576. 


BIBLIOMANIA.  215 

there.  His  constant  study  and  indefatigable  indus- 
try in  collecting  and  perusing  books,  was  only 
equalled  by  his  prudence  and  by  his  talents ;  he 
soon  rose  in  the  estimation  of  his  fellow  monks, 
who  appointed  him  their  librarian,  and  ultimately 
offered  him  the  abbacy,  which  he  refused  with 
Christian  humility,  fearing  too,  lest  its  contingent 
duties  would  debar  him  from  a  full  enjoyment  of 
his  favorite  avocation  ;  but  of  his  book  passion  let 
William  of  Malmsbury  speak  for  himself  :  "A  long 
period  has  elapsed  since,  as  well  through  the  care 
of  my  parents  as  my  own  industry,  I  became  familiar 
with  books.  This  pleasure  possessed  me  from  my 
childhood  ;  this  source  of  delight  has  grown  with 
my  years  ;  indeed,  I  was  so  instructed  by  my  father, 
that  had  I  turned  aside  to  other  pursuits,  I  should 
have  considered  it  as  jeopardy  to  my  soul,  and  dis- 
credit to  my  character.  Wherefore,  mindful  of  the 
adage,  'covet  what  is  necessary,'  I  constrained  my 
early  age  to  desire  eagerly  that  which  it  was  dis- 
graceful not  to  possess.  I  gave  indeed  my  atten- 
tion to  various  branches  of  literature,  but  in  dif- 
ferent degrees.  Logic,  for  instance,  which  gives 
arms  to  eloquence,  I  contented  myself  with  barely 
learning:  medicine,  which  ministers  to  the  health 
of  the  body,  I  studied  with  somewhat  more  atten- 
tion. But  now,  having  scrupulously  examined  the 
various  branches  of  ethics,  I  bow  down  to  its 
majesty,  because  it  spontaneously  inverts  itself  to 
those  who  study  it,  and  directs  their  minds  to  moral 
practice,  history  more  especially ;  which  by  a  certain 
agreeable  recapitulation  of  past  events,  excites  its 
readers   by  example,  to  frame   their  lives  to  the 


2 1 6  BIBLIOMANIA . 

pursuit  of  good  or  to  aversion  from  evil.  When, 
therefore,  at  my  own  expense  I  had  procured  some 
historians  of  foreign  nations,  I  proceeded  during 
my  domestic  leisure,  to  inquire  if  anything  con- 
cerning our  own  country  could  be  found  worthy  of 
handing  down  to  posterity.  Hence  it  arose,  that 
not  content  with  the  writings  of  ancient  times,  I 
began  myself  to  compose,  not  indeed  to  display  my 
learning,  which  is  comparatively  nothing,  but  to 
bring  to  light  events  lying  concealed  in  the  confused 
mass  of  antiquity.  In  consequence,  rejecting  vague 
opinions,  I  have  studiously  sought  for  chronicles  far 
and  near,  though  I  confess  I  have  scarcely  profited 
anything  by  this  industry ;  for  perusing  them  all  I 
still  remained  poor  in  information,  though  I  ceased 
not  my  researches  as  long  as  I  could  find  anything 
to  read."* 

Having  read  this  passage,  I  think  my  readers 
will  admit  that  William  of  Malmsbury  well  deserves 
a  place  among  the  bibliomaniacs  of  the  middle 
ages.  As  an  historian  his  merit  is  too  generally 
known  and  acknowledged  to  require  an  elucidation 
here.  He  combines  in  most  cases  a  strict  atten- 
tion 'to  fact,  with  the  rare  attributes  of  philosophic 
reflection,  and  sometimes  the  bloom  of  eloquence. 
But  simplicity  of  narrative  constitute  the  greatest 
and  sometimes  the  only  charm  in  the  composition 
of  the  monkish  chroniclers.  William  of  Malmsbury 
aimed  at  a  more  ambitious  style,  and  attempted  to 
adorn,  as  he  admits  himself,  his  English  history 
with    Roman   art ;    this   he   does   sometimes  with 

*  William  of  Malmsbury,  translated  by  the  Rev.  J.  Sharpe,  4to. 
Lond.  1815,  p.  107. 


BIBLIOMANIA,  217 

tolerable  elegance,  but  too  often  at  the  cost  of 
necessary  detail.  Yet  still  we  must  place  him  at 
the  head  of  the  middle  age  historians,  for  he  was 
diligent  and  critical,  though  perhaps  not  always 
impartial ;  and  in  matters  connected  with  Romish 
doctrine,  his  testimony  is  not  always  to  be  relied 
upon  without  additional  authority ;  his  account  of 
those  who  held  opinions  somewhat  adverse  to  the 
orthodoxy  of  Rome  is  often  equivocal ;  we  may 
even  suspect  him  of  interpolating  their  writings,  at 
least  of  Alfric,  whose  homilies  had  excited  the 
fears  of  the  Norman  ecclesiastics.  His  works  were 
compiled  from  many  sources  now  unknown ;  and 
from  the  works  of  Bede,  the  Saxon  chronicles,  and 
Florilegus,  he  occasionally  transcribes  with  little 
alteration. 

But  is  it  not  distressing  to  find  that  this  talented 
author,  so  superior  in  other  respects  to  the  crude 
compilers  of  monkish  history,  cannot  rise  above  the 
superstition  of  the  age?  Is  it  not  deplorable  that 
a  mind  so  gifted  could  rely  with  fanatical  zeal  upon 
the  verity  of  all  those  foul  lies  of  Rome  called 
"  Holy  "  miracles ;  or  that  he  could  conceive  how 
God  would  vouchsafe  to  make  his  saints  ridiculous 
in  the  eyes  of  man,  by  such  gross  absurdities  as- 
tradition  records,  but  which  Rome  deemed  worthy 
of  canonization ;  but  it  was  then,  as  now,  so  difficult 
to  conquer  the  prejudices  of  early  teaching.  With 
all  our  philosophy  and  our  science,  great  men  cannot 
do  it  now  ;  even  so  in  the  days  of  old  ;  they  were 
brought  up  in  the  midst  of  superstition  ;  sucked  it 
as  it  were  from  their  mother's  breast,  and  fondly 
cradled  in  its  belief :  and  as  soon  as  the  infant  mind 


2i8  BIBLIOMANIA. 

could  think,  parental  piety  dedicated  it  to  God; 
not,  however,  as  a  light  to  shine  before  men,  but  as 
a  candle  under  a  bushel ;  for  to  serve  God  and  to 
serve  monachism  were  synonymous  expressions  in 
those  days. 

The  west  of  England  was  honored  by  many  a 
monkish  bibliophile  in  the  middle  ages.  The  an- 
nals of  Gloucester  abbey  record  the  names  of 
several.  Prior  Peter,  who  became  abbot  in  the 
year  1104,  is  said  to  have  enclosed  the  monastery 
with  a  stone  wall,  and  greatly  enriched  it  with 
many  books  ''  copia  lidrorumy*  A  few  years  after 
(a.  d.  1 1 13),  Godemon  the  Prior  was  made  abbot, 
and  the  Saxon  Chronicle  records  that  during  his 
time  the  tower  was  set  on  fire  by  lightning  and  the 
whole  monastery  was  burnt ;  so  that  all  the  valuable 
things  therein  were  destroyed  except  a  "few  books 
and  three  priest's  mass-hackles,  "f  Abbot  Gamage 
gave  many  books  to  the  library  in  the  year  1306  ;J 
and  Richard  de  Stowe,  during  the  same  century, 
gave  the  monks  a  small  collection  in  nine  or  ten 
volumes ;  a  list  of  them  is  preserved  in  an  old 
manuscript.  § 

But  earlier  than  this  in  the  eleventh  century,  a 
bishop  of  Exeter  stands  remarkable  as  an  aviator 
librorum,     Leofric,  the  last  bishop  of  Crediton,  and 

*  MS.  Cottonian  Domit.  A.  viii.  fol,  128  b. 

t  Saxon  Chron.  by  Ingram,  p.  343. 

X  Dugdale's  Monastka,  vol.  i.  p.  534.  Leland  gives  a  list  of 
the  books  he  found  there,  but  they  only  number  about  20  volumes. 
See  Collect,  vol.  iv.  p.  159. 

$  MS.  Harleian,  No.  627,  fol.  8a.  "Liber  Geneseos  versifica- 
tus  "  probably  Casdmon's  Paraphrase  was  among  them,  and  Boethius's 
Consolation  of  Philosophy. 


BIBLIOMA  NT  A .  219 

"sometime  lord  chancellor  of  England,"*  received 
permission  from  Edward  the  Confessor  to  translate 
the  seat  of  his  diocese  to  the  city  of  Exeter  in  the 
year  1050.  "  He  was  brought  up  and  studied  in 
Lotharingos,''  says  William  of  Malmsbury,-|-  and  he 
manifested  his  learning  and  fondness  for  study  by 
collecting  books.  Of  the  nature  of  his  collections 
we  are  enabled  to  judge  by  the  volumes  he  gave  to 
the  church  of  Exeter.  The  glimpse  thus  obtained 
lead  us  to  consider  him  a  curious  book-collector ; 
and  it  is  so  interesting  to  look  upon  a  catalogue  of 
a  bishop's  private  library  in  that  early  time,  and  to 
behold  his  tastes  and  his  pursuits  reflected  and 
mirrored  forth  therein,  that  I  am  sure  the  reader 
will  be  gratified  by  its  perusal  .J  After  enumerating 
some  broad  lands  and  a  glittering  array  of  sumpt- 
uous ornaments,  he  is  recorded  to  have  given  to 
the  church  "Two  complete  mass  books;  i  Collec- 
tarium  ;  2  Books  of  Epistles  {Pistel  Bec^)  ;  2  com- 
plete Sang  Bee ;  i  Book  of  night  sang;  i  Book 
unus  liber,  a  Breviary  or  Tropery ;  2  Psalters ; 
3  Psalters  according  to  the  Roman  copies ;  2  Anti- 
phoners  ;  A  precious  book  of  blessings ;  3  others ; 
I  Book  of  Christ  in  English ;  2  Summer  Reading 
bee ;  I  Winter  ditto ;  Rules  and  Canons ;  i  Mar- 
tyrology ;   i   Canons  in   Latin  ;    i   Confessional   in 

*  Godwin  Cat.  of  Bishops,  p.  317. 

t  Will,  of  Malms,  de  Gestis  Pont.  Savile  Script,  fol.  1601, 
p.  256,  apud  Lotharingos  alius  et  doctus. 

X  I  use  a  transcript  of  the  Exeter  MS.  collated  by  Sir  F.  Mad- 
den. Additional  MSS.  No.  9067.  It  is  printed  in  Latin  and  Saxon 
from  a  old  MS.  In  the  Bodl.  Auct.  D.  2.  16.  fol.  i  a;  in  Dugdale's 
Monasticon,  vol.  ii.  p.  257,  which  varies  a  little  from  the  Exeter 
transcript. 

%  Bee  is  the  plural  of  boo,  a  book. 


220  BIBLIOMANIA. 

English;  I  Book  of  Homilies  and  Hymns  for 
Winter  and  Summer ;  i  Boethius  on  the  Consola- 
tion of  Philosophy,  in  English  (King  Alfred's 
translation)  ;  i  Great  Book  of  Poetry  in  English ; 
I  Capitular ;  i  Book  of  very  ancient  nocturnal 
sangs ;  i  Pistel  bee ;  2  Ancient  raeding  bee ;  i  for 
the  use  of  the  priest;  also  the  following  books  in 
Latin,  viz.,  i  Pastoral  of  Gregory;  i  Dialogues  of 
Gregory ;  i  Book  of  the  Four  Prophets ;  i  Boethius 
Consolation  of  Philosophy ;  i  Book  of  the  offices  of 
Amalar;  i  Isagoge  of  Porphyry ;  i  Passional;  i  book 
of  Prosper;  i  book  of  Prudentius the  Martyr;  i  Pru- 
dentius ;  i  Prudentius  {de  Mrib.)  ;  i  other  book ; 
I  Ezechael  the  Prophet ;  i  Isaiah  the  Prophet ; 
1  Song  of  Songs ;  i  Isidore  Etymology ;  i  Isidore 
on  the  New  and  Old  Testament ;  i  Lives  of  the 
Apostles ;  i  Works  of  Bede ;  i  Bede  on  the  Apo- 
calypse ;  I  Bede's  Exposition  on  the  Seven  Ca- 
nonical Epistles ;  i  book  of  Isidore  on  the  Miracles 
of  Christ ;  i  book  of  Orosius ;  i  book  of  Machabees  ; 
I  book  of  Persius ;  i  Sedulus ;  i  Avator ;  i  book  of 
Statins  with  a  gloss." 

Such  were  the  books  forming  a  part  of  the  private 
library  of  a  bishop  of  Exeter  in  the  year  of  grace 
1073.  F^w  indeed  when  compared  with  the  vast 
multitudes  assembled  and  amassed  together  in  the 
ages  of  printed  literature.  But  these  sixty  or 
seventy  volumes,  collected  in  those  times  of  dearth, 
and  each  produced  by  the  tedious  process  of  the 
pen,  were  of  an  excessive  value,  and  mark  their 
owner  as  distinctly  an  amator  librorum,  as  the 
enormous  piles  heaped  together  in  modern  times 
would  do   a  Magliabechi.      Nor  was    Leofric   an 


BIBLIOMANIA.  221 

ordinary  collector ;  he  loved  to  preserve  the  idiom- 
atic poetry  of  those  old  Saxon  days ;  his  ancient 
sang  bee,  or  song  books,  would  now  be  deemed  a 
curious  and  precious  relic  of  Saxon  literature. 
One  of  these  has  fortunately  escaped  the  ravages 
of  time  and  the  fate  of  war.  "  The  great  boc  of 
English  Poetry  "  is  still  preserved  at  Exeter — one 
of  the  finest  relics  of  Anglo  Saxon  poetry  extant. 
Mark  too  those  early  translations  which  we  cannot 
but  regard  with  infinite  pleasure,  and  which  satis- 
factorily prove  that  the  Gospels  and  Church  Service 
was  at  least  partly  read  and  sung  in  the  Saxon 
church  in  the  common  language  of  the  people  ;  let 
the  Roman  Catholics  say  what  they  will.*  But 
without  saying  much  of  his  church  books,  we  cannot 
but  be  pleased  to  find  the  Christian  Boethius  in  his 
library  with  Bede,  Gregory,  Isidore,  Prosper,  Oro- 
sius,  Prudentius,  Sedulus,  Persius  and  Statius ;  these 
are  authors  which  retrieve  the  studies  of  Leofric 
from  the  charge  of  mere  monastic  lore. 

But  good  books  about  this  time  were  beginning 
to  be  sought  after  with  avidity.  The  Cluniac 
monks,  who  were  introduced  into  England  about 
the  year  1077,  more  than  one  hundred  and  sixty 
years  after  their  foundation,  gave  a  powerful  im- 
petus to  monastic  learning;  which  received  addi- 
tional force  by  the  enlightened  efforts  of  the  Cis- 
tercians, instituted  in  1098,  and  spread  into  Britain 
about  the  year  11 28.     These  two  great  branches 

*  See  Dr.  Lingard^s  Hist.  Anglo  Sax.  Church,  vol.  i.  p.  307, 
who  cannot  deny  this  entirely;  see  also  Lappenberg  Hist.  Eng.  vol.  i. 
p.  202,  who  says  that  the  mass  was  read  partially  in  the  Saxon 
tongue.  Hallam  in  his  Supplemental  Notes,  p.  408,  has  a  good  note 
on  the  subject. 


222  BIBLIOMANIA. 

of  the  Benedictine  order,  by  their  great  love  of 
learning,  and  by  their  zeal  in  collecting  books, 
effected  a  great  change  in  the  monkish  literature 
of  England.  "  They  were  not  only  curious  and 
attentive  in  forming  numerous  libraries,  but  with 
indefatigable  assiduity  transcribed  the  volumes  of 
the  ancients,  I' assiduity  infatigable  a  transcrire  les 
livres  des  anciens,  say  the  Benedictines  of  St. 
Maur,*  who  perhaps  however  may  be  suspected  of 
regarding  their  ancient  brethren  in  rather  too  favor- 
able a  light.  But  certain  it  is,  that  the  state  of 
literature  became  much  improved,  and  the  many 
celebrated  scholars  who  flourished  in  the  twelfth 
century  spread  a  taste  for  reading  far  and  wide,  and 
by  their  example  caused  the  monks  to  look  more 
eagerly  after  books.  Peter  of  Blois,  Archdeacon 
of  London,  is  one  of  the  most  pleasing  instances  of 
this  period,  and  his  writings  have  even  now  a  fresh- 
ness and  vivacity  about  them  which  surprise  as  they 
interest  the  reader.  This  illustrious  student,  and 
truly  worthy  man,  was  born  at  Blois  in  the  early 
part  of  the  twelfth  century.  His  parents,  who  were 
wealthy  and  noble,  were  desirous  of  bestowing 
upon  their  son  an  education  befitting  their  own 
rank ;  for  this  purpose  he  was  sent  to  Paris  to 
receive  instruction  in  the  general  branches  of  scho- 
lastic knowledge.  He  paid  particular  attention  to 
poetry,  and  studied  rhetoric  with  still  greater 
ardor.f  But  being  designed  for  the  bar,  he  left 
Paris  for  Bologna,  there  to  study  civil  law;  and 
succeeded  in  mastering  all  the  dry  technicalities  of 

*  Hist.  Litt.  de  la  France,  ix.  p.  142. 

f  Pet.  Blesensis  Opera,  4to.  Mogunt.  1600.     Ep.  Ixxxix. 


BIBLIOMANIA.  223 

legal  science.  He  then  returned  to  Paris  to  study 
scholastic  divinity,*  in  which  he  became  eminently 
proficient,  and  was  ever  excessively  fond.  He 
remained  at  Paris  studying  deeply  himself,  and 
instructing  others  for  many  years.  About  the  year 
1 167  he  went  with  Stephen,  Count  de  Perche,  into 
Sicily,  and  was  appointed  tutor  to  the  young  King 
William  H.,  made  keeper  of  his  private  seal,  and 
for  two  years  conducted  his  education. f  Soon  after 
leaving  Sicily,  he  was  invited  by  Henry  H.  into 
England,  J  and  made  Archdeacon  of  Bath.  It  was 
during  the  time  he  held  that  office  that  he  wrote 
most  of  these  letters,  from  which  we  obtain  a  know- 
ledge of  the  above  facts,  and  which  he  collected 
together  at  the  particular  desire  of  King  Henry ; 
who  ever  regarded  him  with  the  utmost  kindness, 
and  bestowed  upon  him  his  lasting  friendship.  I 
know  not  a  more  interesting  or  a  more  historically 
valuable  volume  than  these  epistolary  collections  of 
Archdeacon  Peter.  They  seem  to  bring  those  old 
times  before  us,  to  seat  us  by  the  fire-sides  of  our 
Norman  forefathers,  and  in  a  pleasant,  quiet  manner 
enter  into  a  gossip  on  the  passing  events  of  the 
day  ;  and  being  written  by  a  student  and  an  amator 
Izbrorunt,  they  moreover  unfold  to  us  the  state  of 
learning  among  the  ecclesiastics  at  least  of  the 
twelfth  century ;  and  if  we  were  to  take  our  worthy 
archdeacon  as  a  specimen,  they  possessed  a  far 
better  taste  for  these  matters  than  we  usually  give 
them  credit  for.  Peter  of  Blois  was  no  ordinary 
man  ;  a  churchman,  he  was  free  from  the  prejudices 
of  churchmen — a  visitant  of  courts  and  the  associate 

*  Ep.  xxvi.  t  Ep.  Ixvi.  X  Ep.  cxxvii. 


224  BIBLIOMANIA. 

of  royalty,  he  was  yet  free  from  the  sycophancy  of 
a  courtier — and  when  he  saw  pride  and  ungodliness 
in  the  church,  or  in  high  places,  he  feared  not  to 
use  his  pen  in  stern  reproof  at  these  abominations. 
It  is  both  curious  and  extraordinary,  when  we  bear 
in  mind  the  prejudices  of  the  age,  to  find  him 
writing  to  a  bishop  upon  the  looseness  of  his 
conduct,  and  reproving  him  for  his  inattention  to 
the  affairs  of  his  diocese,  and  upbraiding  another 
for  displaying  an  unseemly  fondness  for  hunting,* 
and  other  sports  of  the  field ;  which  he  says  is  so 
disreputable  to  one  of  his  holy  calling,  and  quotes 
an  instance  of  Pope  Nicholas  suspending  and 
excluding  from  the  church  Bishop  Lanfred  for  a 
similar  offence ;  which  he  considers  even  more  dis- 
graceful in  Walter,  Lord  Bishop  of  Winchester,  to 

*  Ep.  Ivi.  Yet  we  find  that  Charlemagne,  in  the  year  795, 
granted  the  monks  of  the  monastery  of  St.  Bertin,  in  the  time  of 
Abbot  Odlando,  the  privilege  of  hunting  in  his  forests  for  the  purpose 
of  procuring  leather  to  bind  their  books.  "Odlando  Abbate  hujus 
loci  abbas  nonus,  in  omni  bonitate  suo  praedecessori  Hardrado 
coaequalis  anno  primo  sui  regiminis  impetravit  a  rege  Carolo  privile- 
gium  venandi  in  silvis  nostris  et  aliis  ubicumque  constitutis,  ad  volu- 
mina  librorum  tegaenda,  et  manicas  et  zonas  habendas.  Salvis 
forestis  regiis,  quod  sic  incipit.  Carolus  Dei  gratia  Rex  Francorum 
et  Longobardorum  ac  patricius  Romanorum,  etc.,  data  Septimo  Kal. 
Aprilis,  anno  xxvi.  regni  nostri."  Martene  Thasaurus  Nov.  Anec- 
dotorum  iii.  498.  Warton  mentions  a  similar  instance  of  a  grant  to 
the  monks  of  St.  Sithin,  Dissert,  ii.  prefixed  to  Hist,  of  Eng.  Poetry, 
but  he  quotes  it  with  some  sad  misrepresentations,  and  refers  to 
Mabillon  De  re  Dipiomatica,  61 1.  Mr.  Maitland,  in  his  Dark  Ages, 
has  shown  the  absurdity  of  Warton's  inferences  from  the  fact,  and 
proved  that  it  was  to  the  servants,  or  eorum  homines,  that  Charle- 
magne granted  this  uncanonical  privilege,  p.  216.  But  I  find  no  such 
restriction  in  the  case  I  have  quoted  above.  Probably,  however,  it 
was  thought  needless  to  express  what  might  be  inferred,  or  to  cau- 
tion against  a  practice  so  uncongenial  with  the  christian  duties  of  a 
monk. 


BIBLIOMANIA.  225 

whom  he  is  writing,  on  account  of  his  advanced 
age ;  he  being  at  that  time  eighty  years  old.  We 
are  constantly  reminded  in  reading  his  letters  that 
we  have  those  of  an  indefatigable  student  before 
us ;  almost  every  page  bears  some  allusion  to  his 
books  or  to  his  studies,  and  prove  how  well  and 
deeply  read  he  was  in  Latin  literature ;  not  merely 
the  theological  writings  of  the  church,  but  the 
classics  also.  In  one  of  his  letters  he  speaks  of  his 
own  studies,  and  tells  us  that  when  he  learnt  the 
art  of  versification  and  correct  style,  he  did  not 
spend  his  time  on  legends  and  fables,  but  took  his 
models  from  Livy,  Quintus  Curtius,  Trogus  Pom- 
peius,  Josephus,  Tacitus,  Suetonius,  and  other 
classics ;  in  the  same  letter  he  gives  some  direc- 
tions to  the  Archdeacon  of  Nantes,  who  had  under- 
taken the  education  of  his  nephews,  as  to  the 
manner  of  their  study.  He  had  received  from  the 
archdeacon  a  flattering  account  of  the  progress 
made  by  one  of  them  named  William,  to  which  he 
thus  replies — "You  speak,"  says  he,  "of  William — 
his  great  penetration  and  ingenious  disposition, 
who,  without  grammar  or  the  authors  of  science, 
which  are  both  so  desirable,  has  mastered  the  sub- 
tilties  of  logic,  so  as  to  be  esteemed  a  famous 
logician,  as  I  learn  by  your  letter.  But  this  is  not 
the  foundation  of  a  correct  knowledge — these  sub- 
tilties  which  you  so  highly  extol,  are  manifoldly 
pernicious,  as  Seneca  truly  affirms, — Odibilius  nihil 
est  subtilitate  ubi  est  solce  subtilitas.  What  indeed 
is  the  use  of  these  things  in  which  you  say  he 
spends  his  days — either  at  home,  in  the  army,  at 
the  bar,  in  the  cloister,  in  the  church,  in  the  court, 


226  BIBLIOMANIA. 

or  indeed  in  any  position  whatever,  except,  I  sup- 
pose, the  schools  ?  Seneca  says,  in  writing  to  Luca- 
lius,  "  Quid  est,  inquit  acutius  arista  et  in  quo  est 
utiles!'^  In  many  letters  we  find  him  quoting 
the  classics  with  the  greatest  ease,  and  the  most 
appropriate  application  to  his  subject ;  in  one  he 
refers  to  Ovid,  Persius,  and  Seneca, f  and  in  others, 
when  writing  in  a  most  interesting  and  amusing 
manner  of  poetic  fame  and  literary  study,  he 
extracts  from  Terence,  Ovid,  Juvenal,  Horace, 
Plato,  Cicero,  Valerius  Maximus,  Seneca,  etc.  J 
In  another,  besides  a  constant  use  of  Scripture, 
which  proves  how  deeply  read  too  he  was  in  Holy 
Writ,  he  quotes  with  amazing  prodigality  from 
Juvenal,  Frontius,  Vigetius,  Dio,  Virgil,  Ovid, 
Justin,  Horace,  and  Plutarch.§  Indeed,  Horace 
was  a  great  favorite  with  the  archdeacon,  who  often 
applied  some  of  his  finest  sentences  to  illustrate  his 
familiar  chat  and  epistolary  disquisitions.!  It  is 
worth  noticing  that  in  one  he  quotes  the  Roman 
history  of  Sallust,  in  six  books,  which  is  now  lost, 
save  a  few  fragments ;  the  passage  relates  to  Pom- 
pey  the  Great. ^  We  can  scarcely  refrain  from  a 
smile  at  the  eagerness  of  Archdeacon  Peter  in  per- 
suading his  friends  to  relinquish  the  too  enticing 
study  of  frivolous  plays,  which  he  says  can  be  of  no 
service  to  the  interest  of  the  soul  ;**  and  then,  for- 

*  Ep.  ci.  p.  184.  He  afterwards  quotes  Livy,  Tacitus,  and  many 
others. 

t  Ep.  xiv.  He  was  fond  of  Quintus  Curtius,  and  often  read  his 
history  with  much  pleasure.     Ep.  ci.  p.  184. 

X  Ep.  Ixxvii.  p.  81.  %  Ep.  xciv. 

II  Ep.  xcii.  and  also  Ixxii.  which  is  redundant  with  quotations 
from  the  poets. 

IT  Ep.  xciv.  p.  170.  *•  Ep.  Ivii. 


BIBLIOMANIA.  227 

getting  this  admonition,  sending  for  tragedies  and 
comedies  himself,  that  he  might  get  them  tran- 
scribed,* This  puts  one  in  mind  of  a  certain 
modern  divine,  whose  conduct  not  agreeing  with 
his  doctrine,  told  his  hearers  not  to  do  as  he  did, 
but  as  he  told  them.  It  appears  also  equally 
ludicrous  to  find  him  upbraiding  a  monk,  named 
Peter  of  Blois,  for  studying  the  pagan  authors  :  "the 
foolish  old  fables  of  Hercules  and  Jove,"  their  lies 
and  philosophy  ;f  when,  as  we  have  seen,  he  read 
them  so  ravenously,  and  so  greatly  borrowed  from 
them  himself.  But  then  we  must  bear  in  mind  that 
the  archdeacon  had  also  well  stored  his  mind  with 
Scripture,  and  certainly  always  deemed  that  the 
first  and  most  important  of  all  his  studies,  which 
was  perhaps  not  the  case  with  the  monk  to  whom 
he  writes.  In  some  of  his  letters  we  have  pleasing 
pictures  of  the  old  times  presented  to  us,  and  it  is 
astonishing  how  homely  and  natural  they  read, 
after  the  elapse  of  700  years.  In  more  than  one 
he  launches  out  in  strong  invectives  against  the 
lawyers,  who  in  all  ages  seems  to  have  borne  the 
indignation  of  mankind;  Peter  accuses  them  of 
selling  their  knowledge  for  hire,  to  the  direct  per- 
version of  all  justice ;  of  favoring  the  rich  and 
oppressing  the  poor. J  He  reproves  Reginald, 
Archdeacon  of  Salisbury,  for  occupying  his  time 
with  falconry,  instead  of  attending  to  his  clerical 
duties ;  and  in  another,  a  most  interesting  letter,  he 
gives  a  description  of  King  Henry  II.,  whose 
character  he  extols  in  panegyric  terms,  and  proves 
how   much   superior  he  was  in  learning  to  Wil- 

*  Ep.  xii.  t  Ep.  Ixxvi.  p.  132.  \  Ep.  cxl.  p.  253. 


228  BIBLIOMANIA. 

Ham  II.  of  Sicily.  He  says  that  "  Henry,  as  often 
as  he  could  breathe  from  his  care  and  solicitudes, 
he  was  occupied  in  secret  reading;  or  at  other 
times  joined  by  a  body  of  clergy,  would  try  to  solve 
some  elaborate  question  qMcestiones  laborat  evol- 
vere.  *  Frequently  we  find  him  writing  about  books, 
begging  transcripts,  eagerly  purchasing  them ; 
and  in  one  of  his  letters  to  Alexander,  Abbot  of 
Jenniege,  Gemiticensem,  he  writes,  apologizing,  and 
begging  his  forgiveness  for  not  having  fulfilled  his 
promise  in  returning  a  book  which  he  had  borrowed 
from  his  library,  and  begs  that  his  friend  will  yet 
allow  him  to  retain  it  some  days  longer.f  The 
last  days  of  a  scholar's  life  are  not  always  remark- 
able, and  we  know  nothing  of  those  of  Archdeacon 
Peter;  for  after  the  death  of  Henry  II.,  his  intel- 
lectual worth  found  no  royal  mind  to  appreciate  it. 
The  lion-hearted  Richard  thought  more  of  the 
battle  axe  and  crusading  than  the  encouragement 
of  literature  or  science ;  and  Peter,  like  many  other 
students,  grown  old  in  their  studies,  was  left  in  his 
age  to  wander  among  his  books,  unmolested  and 
uncared  for.  With  the  friendship  of  a  few  clerical 
associates,  and  the  archdeaconry  of  London,  which 
by  the  bye  was  totally  unproductive,^  he  died,  and 
for  many  ages  was  forgotten.  But  a  student's 
worth  can  never  perish ;  a  time  is  certain  to  arrive 
when  his  erudition  will  receive  its  due  reward  of 
human  praise.  We  now,  after  a  slumber  of  many 
hundred  years,  begin  to  appreciate  his  value,  and 
to  entertain  a  hearty  friendship  and  esteem  for  the 
venerable  Archdeacon  Peter. 

•  Ep.  Ixvi.  p.  115.  t  Ep.  xxxvii.  p.  68.  %  Ep.  cH. 


CHAPTER    X. 

Winchester  famous  for  its  Scribes. — Ethelwold  and 
Godemann. — Anecdotes. — Library  of  the  Monas- 
tery of  Reading —  The  Bible. — Library  of  Depying 
Priory. — Effects  of  Gospel  Reading. — Catalogue 
of  Ramsey  Library. — Hebrew  MSS. — Fine  Clas- 
sics, etc. — St.  Edmund's  Bury. — Church  of  Ely. 
— Canute,  etc. 


N  the  olden  time  the  monks  of  Win- 
chester* were   renowned  for  their 
calligraphic  and  pictorial  art.     The 
choice  book  collectors  of  the  day 
sought  anxiously  for  volumes  pro- 
duced by  these  ingenious  scribes, 
and    paid    extravagant    prices    for 
them.      A    superb    specimen    of    their   skill    was 
executed  for  Bishop  Ethelwold ;  that  enlightened 
and  benevolent  prelate  was  a  great  patron  of  art 

*  Those  learned  in  such  matters  refer  the  foundation  of  Win- 
chester cathedral  and  monastery  to  a  remote  period.  An  old  writer 
says  that  it  was  "built  by  King  Lucius,  who,  abolishing  Paganisme, 
embraced  Christ  the  first  yere  of  his  reigne,  being  the  yeere  of  our 
Lord  i8o." — Godwin's  Cat.  p.  157.  See  also  Usher  de  Primordiis. 
fo.  126. 


230  BIBLIOMANIA, 

and  literature,  and  himself  a  grammaticus  and  poet 
of  no  mean  pretensions.  He  did  more  than  any 
other  of  his  time  to  restore  the  architectural  beau- 
ties which  were  damaged  or  destroyed  by  the  fire 
and  sword  of  the  Danish  invaders.  His  love  of 
these  undertakings,  his  industry  in  carrying  them 
out,  and  the  great  talent  he  displayed  in  their 
restoration,  is  truly  wonderful  to  observe.  He  is 
called  by  Wolstan,  his  biographer,  "  a  great  builder 
of  churches,  and  divers  other  works."*  He  was 
fond  of  learning,  and  very  liberal  in  diffusing  the 
knowledge  which  he  acquired ;  and  used  to  instruct 
the  young  by  reading  to  them  the  Latin  authors, 
translated  into  the  Saxon  tongue.  "  He  wrote  a 
Saxion  version  of  the  Rule  of  Saint  Benedict,  which 
was  so  much  admired,  and  so  pleased  King  Edgar, 
that  he  granted  to  him  the  manor  of  Sudborn,f  as 
a  token  of  his  approbation." 

Among  a  number  of  donations  which  he  be- 
queathed to  this  monastery,  twenty  volumes  are 
enumerated,  embracing  some  writings  of  Bede  and 
Isidore.  J  As  a  proof  of  his  bibliomanical  propen- 
sities, I  refer  the  reader  to  the  celebrated  Benedic- 
tional  of  the  Duke  of  Devonshire ;  that  rich  gem, 
with  its  resplendent  illuminations,  place  it  beyond 
the  shadow  of  a  doubt,   and  prove   Ethelwold  to 

*  Ecclesiarum  ac  diversorum  operum  magnus  aedificator,  et  dum 
esset  abbas  et  dum  esset  episcopus." — Wolstan.  Vita  jEtheliv.  ap. 
Mabillon  Actce  S.  S.  Benedict,  Scbc.  v.  p.  614. 

t  Dugdale's  Monasticon,  vol.  i.  p.  614. 

t  MS.  belonging  to  the  Society  of  Antiquaries,  No.  60,  fo.  34. 
See  Dugdale  Monast.  vol.  i.  p.  382.  He  gave  to  the  monks  of 
Abingdon  a  copy  of  the  Gospels  cased  in  silver,  ornamented  with 
gold  and  precious  stones. 


BIBLIOMANIA.  231 

have  been  an  amator  librorum  of  consummate  taste. 
This  fine  specimen  of  Saxon  ingenuity  is  the  pro- 
duction of  a  cloistered  monk  of  Winchester,  named 
Godemann,  who  transcribed  it  at  the  bishop's 
special  desire,  as  we  learn,  from  the  following 
lines : — 

"  Presentem  Biblum  iusset  prescribere  Presul. 
WintonicB  Dus  que  fecerat  esse  Patronum 
Magnus  ^thelwoldus"* 

Godemann,  the  scribe,  entreats  the  prayers  of 
his  readers,  and  wishes  "all  who  gaze  on  this  book 
to  ever  pray  that  after  the  end  of  the  flesh  I  may 
inherit  health  in  heaven  :  this  is  the  fervent  prayer 
of  the  scribe,  the  humble  Godemann. "  This 
talented  illuminator  was  chaplain  to  Ethelwold, 
and  afterwards  abbot  of  Thorney.f  The  choice 
Benedictional  in  the  public  library  of  Rouen  is  also 
ascribed  to  his  elegant  pen,  and  adds  additional 
lustre  of  his  artistic  fame.  J 

Most  readers  have  heard  of  Walter,  (who  was 
prior  of  St.  Swithin  in  1 1 74,)  giving  twelve  meas- 
ures of  barley  and  a  pall,  on  which  was  embroidered 
in  silver  the  history  of  St.  Berinus  converting  a 
Saxon  king,  for  a  fine  copy  of  Bede's  Homilies  and 
St.  Austin's  Psalter  ;§  and  of  Henry,  a  monk  of  the 
Benedictine  Abbey  of  Hyde,  near  there,  who  tran- 
scribed, in  the  year  11 78,  Terence,  Boethius,  Seu- 
tonius  and  Claudian ;  and  richly  illuminated  and 

*  Archesologia,  vol.  xxiv,  p.  22;  and  Dibdin's  delightful  **Z>^- 
cameron,^^  vol.  i.  p.  lix. 

t  Wuls.  Act.  S.  S.  Benedict,  p.  616. 

t  Archaeolog.  vol.  xxiv. 

$  Regist.  Priorat.  S.  Swithin  Winton. — Warton  11,  Dis^rt. 


232  BIBLIOMANIA. 

bound  them,  which  he  exchanged  with  a  neigh- 
boring bibliophile  for  a  life  of  St.  Christopher, 
St.  Gregory's  Pastoral  Care,  and  four  Missals.* 
Nicholas,  Bishop  of  Winchester,  left  one  hundred 
marks  and  a  Bible,  with  a  fine  gloss,  in  two  large 
volumes,  to  the  convent  of  St.  Swithin.  John  de 
Pontissara,  who  succeeded  that  bishop  in  the  year 
1282,  borrowed  this  valuable  manuscript  to  benefit 
and  improve  his  biblical  knowledge  by  a  perusal  of 
its  numerous  notes.  So  great  was  their  regard  for 
this  precious  gift,  that  the  monks  demanded  a  bond 
for  its  return ;  a  circumstance  which  has  caused 
some  doubt  as  to  the  plenitude  of  the  Holy  Scrip- 
tures in  the  English  Church  during  that  period ;  at 
least  among  those  who  have  only  casually  glanced 
at  the  subject.  I  may  as  well  notice  that  the 
ancient  Psalter  in  the  Cottonian  Libraryf  was 
written  about  the  year  1035,  by  the  "most  humble 
brother  and  monk  ^Isinus,"  of  Hyde  Abbey.  The 
table  prefixed  to  the  volume  records  the  deaths  of 
other  eminent  scribes  and  illuminators,  whose 
names  are  mingled  with  the  great  men  of  the 
day ; J  showing  how  esteemed  they  were,  and  how 
honorable  was  their  avocation.  Thus  under  the 
15th  of  May  we  find  "  Obitus  j^therici  m"  picto ;' 
and  again,  under  the  5th  of  July,  "  Obit  Wulfrici 
m"  pictoris.^'  Many  were  the  choice  transcripts 
made  and  adorned  by  the  Winchester  monks. 

The  monastery  of  Reading,  in  Berkshire,  pos- 
sessed during  the  reign   of    Henry   the   Third   a 

•  Ibid.  t  Marked  Titus,  D.  27. 

X  It  is  called  "  Calendarium,  in  quo  notantur  dies  obitus  piuri- 
morum  monachorum,  abbatum,  etc.;  temp,  regum  Anglo-Saxonum." 


BIBLIOMANIA.  233 

choice  library  of  a  hundred  and  fifty  volumes.  It 
is  printed  in  the  Supplement  to  the  History  of 
Reading-,  from  the  original  prefixed  to  the  Wool- 
lascot  manuscripts.  But  it  is  copied  very  inac- 
curately, and  with  many  grievous  omissions ; 
nevertheless  it  will  suffice  to  enable  us  to  gain  a 
knowledge  of  the  class  of  books  most  admired  by 
the  monks  of  Reading;  and  the  Christian  reader 
will  be  glad  to  learn  that  the  catalogue  opens,  as 
usual,  with  the  Holy  Scriptures.  Indeed  no  less 
than  four  fine  large  and  complete  copies  of  the 
Bible  are  enumerated.  The  first  in  two  volumes ; 
the  second  in  three  volumes ;  the  third  in  two,  and 
the  fourth  in  the  same  number  which  was  tran- 
scribed by  the  Cantor,  and  kept  in  the  cloisters  for 
the  use  of  the  monks.  But  in  addition  to  these, 
which  are  in  themselves  quite  sufficient  to  excul- 
pate the  monks  from  any  charge  of  negligence  of 
Bible  reading,  we  find  a  long  list  of  separate  por- 
tions of  the  Old  and  New  Testament ;  besides 
many  of  the  most  important  works  of  the  Fathers, 
and  productions  of  mediaeval  learning,  as  the  fol- 
lowing names  will  testify  : — 


Ambrose. 

Cassidorus. 

Jerome. 

Origen. 

Augustine. 

Eusebius. 

Josephus. 

Plato. 

Basil. 

Gregory. 

Lombard. 

Prosper. 

Bede 

Hilarius. 

Macrobius. 

Rabanus  Maurus, 

They  possessed  also  the  works  of  Geoffry  of  Mon- 
mouth ;  the  Vita  Karoli  et  Alexandri  et  gesta 
Normannorum ;  a  "Ystoria  Rading,"  and  many 
others  equally  interesting;  and  among  the  books 
given  by  Radbert  of  Witchir,  we  find  a  Juvenal, 


234  BIBLIOMANIA. 

the  Bucolics  and  Georgics  of  Virgil,  and  the  "  Ode 
et  Poetria  et  Sermone  et  Epistole  Oratii.,'  But 
certainly  the  most  striking  characteristic  is  the  fine 
biblical  collection  contained  in  their  library,  which 
is  well  worthy  our  attention,  if  not  our  admiration  : 
not  but  that  we  find  them  in  other  libraries  much 
less  extensive.  In  those  monasteries  whose  poverty 
would  not  allow  the  purchase  of  books  in  any 
quantity,  and  whose  libraries  could  boast  but  of 
some  twenty  or  thirty  volumes,  it  is  scarcely  to  be 
expected  that  they  should  be  found  rich  in  profane 
literature;  but  it  is  deeply  gratifying  to  find,  as  we 
generally  do,  the  Bible  first  on  their  little  list; 
conveying  a  proof  by  this  prominence,  in  a  quiet 
but  expressive  way,  how  highly  they  esteemed  that 
holy  volume,  and  how  essential  they  deemed  its 
possession.  Would  that  they  had  profited  more 
by  its  holy  precepts  ! 

We  find  an  instance  of  this,  and  a  proof  of 
their  fondness  for  the  Bible,  in  the  catalogue  of 
the  books  in  Depying  Priory,*  in  Lincolnshire ; 
which,  containing  a  collection  of  twenty-three  vol- 
umes, enumerates  a  copy  of  the  Bible  first  on  the 
humble  list.     The  catalogue  is  as  follows  : — 

These  are  the  books  in  the  library  of  the  monks  of  Depying.f 

The  Bible. 

The  first  part  of  the  Morals  of  Pope  St.  Gregory. 
The  second  part  of  the  Morals  by  the  same. 
Book  of  Divine  Offices. 

*  It  was  a  little  cell  dependant  on  the  Abbey  of  Thomey. 

t  MS.  Harleian,  No.  3658,  fo.  74,  b.  It  will  be  found  printed 
in  Dugdale's  Monasticon,  vol.  iv.  p.  167.  The  catalogue  was 
evidently  written  about  the  year  1350. 


BIBLIOMANIA.  235 

Gesta  Britonomm. 

Tracts  of  Robert,  Bishop  of  Lincoln,  on  Confession,  with  other 

compilations. 
Martyrologium,  with   the   Rules   of  St,   Benedict;    Passion   of 

St.  James,  with  other  books. 
Constitutions  of  Pope  Benedict. 
History  of  the  Island  of  Ely. 
Hugucio  de  dono  fratris  Johannis  Tiryngham. 
Homilies  of  the  blessed  Gregory. 
Constitutions  of  Pope  Clement  XII. 
Book  of  the  Virtues  and  Vices. 
Majester  Historiarum. 
Sacramentary   given  by   Master  John   Swarby,  Rector  of  the 

Church  of  St.  Guthlac. 
One  great  Portoforium  for  the  use  of  the  Brothers. 
Two  ditto. 

Two  Psalters  for  the  use  of  the  Brothers. 
Three  Missals  for  the  use  of  the  Brothers. 

There  is  not  much  in  this  scanty  collection,  the 
loss  of  which  we  need  lament ;  nor  does  it  inspire 
us  with  a  very  high  notion  of  the  learning  of  the 
monks  of  Depying  Priory.  Yet  how  cheering  it  is 
to  find  that  the  Bible  was  studied  in  this  little  cell ; 
and  I  trust  the  monk  often  drew  from  it  many 
words  of  comfort  and  consolation.  Where  is  the 
reader  who  will  not  regard  these  instances  of  Bible 
reading  with  pleasure  ?  Where  is  the  Christian 
who  will  not  rejoice  that  the  Gospel  of  Christ  was 
read  and  loved  in  the  turbulent  days  of  the  Norman 
monarchs?  Where  is  the  philosopher  who  will 
affirm  that  we  owe  nothing  to  this  silent  but  effec- 
tual and  fervent  study?  Where  is  he  who  will 
maintain  that  the  influence  of  the  blessed  and 
abundant  charity — the  cheering  promises,  and  the 
sweet  admonitions  of  love  and  mercy  with  which 
the  Gospels  overflow — aided  nothing  in  the  progress 


236  .  BIBLIOMANIA. 

of  civilization  ?  Where  is  the  Bible  student  who 
will  believe  that  all  this  reading  of  the  Scriptures 
was  unprofitable  because,  forsooth,  a  monk  preached 
and  taught  it  to  the  multitude  ? 

Let  the  historian  open  his  volumes  with  a  new 
interest,  and  ponder  over  their  pages  with  a  fresh 
spirit  of  inquiry  ;  let  him  read  of  days  of  darkness 
and  barbarity;  and  as  he  peruses  on,  trace  the 
origin  of  the  light  whose  brightness  drove  the  dark- 
ness and  barbarity  away.  How  much  will  he  trace 
to  the  Bible's  influence ;  how  often  will  he  be  com- 
pelled to  enter  a  convent  wall  to  find  in  the  gospel 
student  the  one  who  shone  as  a  redeeming  light 
in  those  old  days  of  iniquity  and  sin  ;  and  will  he 
deny  to  the  Christian  priest  his  gratitude  and  love, 
because  he  wore  the  cowl  and  mantle  of  a  monk, 
or  because  he  loved  to  read  of  saints  whose  lives 
were  mingled  with  lying  legends,  or  because  he 
chose  a  life  which  to  us  looks  dreary,  cold,  and 
heartless.  Will  he  deny  him  a  grateful  recollec- 
tion when  he  reads  of  how  much  good  he  was  per- 
mitted to  achieve  in  the  Church  of  Christ ;  of  how 
many  a  doubting  heart  he  reassured  ;  of  how  many 
a  soul  he  fired  with  a  true  spark  of  Christian  love ; 
when  he  reads  of  how  the  monk  preached  the  faith 
of  Christ,  and  how  often  he  led  some  wandering 
pilgrim  into  the  path  of  vital  truth  by  the  sweet 
words  of  the  dear  religion  which  he  taught ;  when 
he  reads  that  the  hearts  of  many  a  Norman  chief 
was  softened  by  the  sweetness  of  the  gospel's  voice, 
and  his  evil  passions  were  lulled  by  the  hymn  of 
praise  which  the  monk  devoutly  sang  to  his  Master 
in  heaven  above.     But  speaking  of  the  existence  of 


BIBLIOMANIA.  237 

the  Bible  among  the  monks  puts  me  in  mind  of  the 
Abbey  of  Ramsey  and  its  fine  old  library  of  books, 
which  was  particularly  rich  in  biblical  treasures. 
Even  superior  to  Reading,  as  regards  its  biblical 
collection,  was  the  library  of  Ramsey.  A  portion 
of  an  old  catalogue  of  the  library  of  this  monastery 
has  been  preserved,  apparently  transcribed  about 
the  beginning  of  the  fourteenth  century,  during  the 
warlike  reign  of  Richard  the  Second.  It  is  one  of 
the  richest  and  most  interesting  relics  of  its  kind 
extant,  at  least  of  those  to  be  found  in  our  own 
public  libraries ;  and  a  perusal  of  it  will  not  fail  to 
leave  an  impression  on  the  mind  that  the  monks 
were  far  wealthier  in  their  literar}'  stores  than  we 
previously  imagined.  Originally  on  two  or  three 
skins,  it  is  now  torn  into  five  separate  pieces,*  and 
in  other  respects  much  dilapidated.  The  writing 
also  in  some  parts  is  nearly  obliterated,  so  as  to 
render  the  document  scarcely  readable.  It  is  much 
to  be  regretted  that  this  interesting  catalogue  is 
but  a  portion  of  the  original ;  in  its  complete  form 
it  would  probably  have  described  twice  as  many 
volumes ;  but  a  fragment  as  it  is,  it  nevertheless 
contains  the  titles  of  more  than  eleven  hundred 
books,  with  the  names  of  many  of  their  donors 
attached.  A  creditable  and  right  worthy  testimo- 
nial this,  of  the  learning  and  love  of  books  pre- 
valent among  the  monks  of  Ramsey  Monastery. 
More  than  seven  hundred  of  this  goodly  number 

*  Cottonian  Charta,  11- 16.  I  am  sorry  to  observe  so  little 
attention  paid  to  this  curious  fragment,  which,  insignificant  as  it  may 
appear  to  some,  is  nevertheless  quite  a  curiosity  of  literature  in  its 
way.  Its  tattered  condition  calls  for  the  care  of  Sir  Frederick 
Madden. 


238  BIBLIOMANIA. 

were  of  a  miscellaneous  nature,  and  the  rest  were 
principally  books  used  in  the  performance  of  divine 
service.  Among  these  there  were  no  less  than 
seventy  Breviaries ;  thirty-two  Grails ;  twenty-nine 
Processionals ;  and  one  hundred  Psalters !  The 
reader  will  regard  most  of  these  as  superstitious 
and  useless ;  nor  should  I  remark  upon  them  did 
they  not  show  that  books  were  not  so  scarce  in 
those  times  as  we  suppose ;  as  this  prodigality 
satisfactorily  proves,  and  moreover  testifies  to  the 
unceasing  industry  of  the  monkish  scribes.  We 
who  are  used  to  the  speed  of  the  printing  press  and 
its  fertile  abundance  can  form  an  opinion  of  the 
labor  necessary  to  transcribe  this  formidable  array 
of  papistical  literature.  Four  hundred  volumes 
transcribed  with  the  plodding  pen !  each  word  col- 
lated and  each  page  diligently  revised,  lest  a  blunder 
or  a  misspelt  syllable  should  blemish  those  books  so 
deeply  venerated.  What  long  years  of  dry  tedious 
labor  and  monotonous  industry  was  here  ! 

But  the  other  portion  of  the  catalogue  fully 
compensates  for  this  vast  proportion  of  ecclesiastical 
volumes.  Besides  several  Biblia  optima  in  duobus 
voluminibus,  or  complete  copies  of  the  Bible,  many 
separate  books  of  the  inspired  writers  are  noted 
down  ;  indeed  the  catalogue  lays  before  us  a  superb 
array  of  fine  biblical  treasures,  rendered  doubly 
valuable  by  copious  and  useful  glossaries ;  and  em- 
bracing many  a  rare  Hebrew  MS.  Bible,  bibliotheca 
hebraice,  and  precious  commentary.  I  count  no 
less  than  twenty  volumes  in  this  ancient  language. 
But  we  often  find  Hebrew  manuscripts  in  the 
monastic   catalogues    after   the   eleventh   century. 


BIBLIOMANIA.  239 

The  Jews,  who  came  over  in  great  numbers  about 
that  time,  were  possessed  of  many  valuable  books, 
and  spread  a  knowledge  of  their  language  and 
literature  among  the  students  of  the  monasteries. 
And  when  the  cruel  persecution  commenced  against 
them  in  the  thirteenth  century,  they  disposed  of 
their  books,  which  were  generally  bought  up  by 
the  monks,  who  were  ever  hungry  after  such 
acquisitions.  Gregory,  prior  of  Ramsey,  collected 
a  great  quantity  of  Hebrew  MSS.  in  this  way,  and 
highly  esteemed  the  language,  in  which  he  became 
deeply  learned.  At  his  death,  in  the  year  1250,  he 
left  them  to  the  library  of  his  monastery.*  Nor 
was  my  lord  prior  a  solitary  instance ;  many  others 
of  the  same  abbey,  inspired  by  his  example  and 
aided  by  his  books,  studied  the  Hebrew  with  equal 
success.  Brother  Dodford,  the  Armarian,  and 
Holbeach,  a  monk,  displayed  their  erudition  in 
writing  a  Hebrew  lexicon.f 

The  library  of  Ramsey  was  also  remarkably 
rich  in  patristic  lore.  They  gloried  in  the  pos- 
session of  the  works  of  Ambrose,  Augustine,  An- 
selm,  Basil,  Boniface,  Bernard,  Gregory,  and  many 
others  equally  voluminous.  But  it  was  not  exclu- 
sively to  the  study  of  such  matters  that  these 
monks  applied  their  minds,  they  possessed  a  taste 
for  other  branches  of  literature  besides.  They 
read  histories  of  the  church,  histories  of  England, 
of  Normandy,  of  the  Jews;  and  histories  of  scholas- 

*  Leland  Script.  Brit.  p.  321,  and  MSS.  Bibl.  Lambeth,  Whar- 
ton, L.  p.  661.  Libris  Prioris  Gregorii  de  Ramsey,  Prima  pars 
BibliotheccR  Hebraice,  etc.     Warton  Dissert  ii.  Eng.  Poetry. 

t  Bale,  iv.  41,  at  ix.  9.      Leland.  Scrip.  Brit.  p.  452. 


240  BIBLIOMANIA. 

tic  philosophy,  and  many  old  chronicles  which  re- 
posed on  their  shelves.  In  science  they  appear  to 
have  been  equally  studious,  for  the  catalogue 
enumerates  works  on  medicine,  natural  history, 
philosophy,  mathematics,  logic,  dialects,  arithme- 
tic and  music!  Who  will  say  after  this  that  the 
monks  were  ignorant  of  the  sciences  and  careless 
of  the  arts  ?  The  classical  student  has  perhaps  ere 
this  condemned  them  for  their  want  of  taste,  and 
felt  indignant  at  the  absence  of  those  authors  of 
antiquity  whose  names  and  works  he  venerates. 
But  the  monks,  far  from  neglecting  those  precious 
volumes,  were  ever  careful  of  their  preservation  ; 
they  loved  Virgil,  Horace,  and  even  Ovid,  "heathen 
dogs"  as  they  were,  and  enjoyed  a  keen  relish  for 
their  beauties.  I  find  in  this  catalogue  the  follow- 
ing choice  names  of  antiquity  occur  repeatedly  : — 

Aristotle.  Macrobius. 

Arian.  Orosius. 

Boethius.  Ovid. 

Claudius.  Plato. 

Dionysius.  Priscian. 

Donatus.  Prudentius. 

Horace.  Seneca. 

Josephus.  Sallust. 

Justin.  Solinus. 

Lucan.  Terence. 

Martial.  Virgil. 

Here  were  rich  mines  of  ancient  eloquence,  and 
fragrant  flowers  of  poesy  to  enliven  and  perfume 
the  dull  cloister  studies  of  the  monks.  It  is  not 
every  library  or  reading  society  even  of  our  own 
time  that  possess  so  many  gems  of  old.  But  other 
treasures  might  yet  be  named  which  still  further 


BIBLIOMANIA.  241 

testify  to  the  varied  tastes  and  literary  pursuits  of 
these  monastic  bibliophiles ;  but  I  shall  content 
myself  with  naming  Peter  of  Blois,  the  Sentences 
of  Peter  Lombard,  of  which  they  had  several 
copies,  some  enriched  with  choice  commentaries 
and  notes,  the  works  of  Thomas  Aquinas  and 
others  of  his  class,  a  "  Liber  Ricardi,"  Dictionaries, 
Grammars,  and  the  writings  of  '*  Majestri  Robi 
Grostete,"  the  celebrated  Bishop  of  Lincoln,  re- 
nowned as  a  great  amator  librorum  and  collector 
of  Grecian  literature,  I  might  easily  swell  this 
notice  out  to  a  considerable  extent  by  enumerating 
many  other  book  treasures  in  this  curious  collec- 
tion :  but  enough  has  been  said  to  enable  the 
reader  to  judge  of  the  sort  of  literature  the  monks 
of  Ramsey  collected  and  the  books  they  read ;  and 
if  he  should  feel  inclined  to  pursue  the  inquiry 
further,  I  must  refer  him  to  the  original  manu- 
script, promising  him  much  gratification  for  his 
trouble.*  It  only  remains  for  me  to  say  that  the 
Vandalism  of  the  Reformation  swept  all  traces  of 
this  fine  library  away,  save  the  broken,  tattered 
catalogue  we  have  just  examined.  But  this  is  more 
than  has  been  spared  from  some.  The  abbey  of 
St.  Edmunds  Buryf  at  one  time  must  have  enjoyed 
a  copious  library,  but  we  have  no  catalogue  that  I 
am  aware  of  to  tell  of  its  nature,  not  even  a  passing 

*  Alward,  Bishop  of  London,  gave  many  books  to  the  library  of 
Ramsey  monastery,  Hoveden  Scrip,  post.  Bedam.  1596,  fol.  252. 
Dugdale's  Monasticon,  vol.  ii. 

t  In  the  year  1327,  the  inhabitants  of  Bury  besieged  the  abbey, 
wounded  the  monks,  and  "bare  out  of  the  abbey  all  the  gold,  silver 
ornaments,  bookes,  charters,  and  other  writings."  Stowe  Annals, 
P-  353. 


242  BIBLIOMANIA. 

notice  of  its  well-stored  shelves,  except  a  few  lines 
in  which  Leland  mentions  some  of  the  old  manu- 
scripts he  found  therein.*  But  a  catalogue  of  their 
library  in  the  flourishing  days  of  their  monastery 
would  have  disclosed,  I  imagine,  many  curious 
works,  and  probably  some  singular  writings  on  the 
"  crafft  off  medycyne^ "  which  Abbot  Baldwin, 
*'phesean"  to  Edward  the  Confessor,-|-  had  given 
the  monks,  and  of  whom  Lydgate  thus  speaks — 

"  Baldewynus,  a  monk  off  Seynt  Denys, 
Gretly  expert  in  crafFt  of  medycynej 
Full  provydent  off  counsayl  and  right  wys, 
Sad  off  his  port,  functuons  off  doctryne ; 
After  by  grace  and  influence  devyne, 
Choose  off  Bury  Abbot,  as  I  reede 
The  thyrdde  in  order  that  did  ther  succeade."J 

We  may  equally  deplore  the  loss  of  the  cat- 
alogue of  the  monastery  of  Ely,  which,  during  the 
middle  ages,  we  have  every  reason  to  suppose  pos- 
sessed a  library  of  much  value  and  extent.  This 
old  monastery  can  trace  its  foundation  back  to  a 
remote  period,  and  claim  as  its  foundress,  Ethel- 
dredse,§  the  daughter  of  Anna,  King  of  the  East 
Angles,  she  was  the  wife  of  King  Ecgfrid,|  with 
whom  she  lived  for  twelve  long  years,  though 
during  that  time  she  preserved  the  glory  of  perfect 
virginity,    much   to    the   annoyance   of   her   royal 

•  He  particularly  notices  a  Sallust,  a  very  ancient  copy,  vetustis 
simus. 

t  And  also  to  Lanfranc,  he  was  elected  in  the  year  1065. 
t  Harleian  MS.  No.  2278. 

*  Or  Atheldryth. 

II  The  youngest  son  of  Osway,  King  of  Northumbria ;  he  suc- 
ceeded to  the  throne  on  the  death  of  his  father  in  the  year  670. 


BIBLIOMANIA.  243 

spouse,  who  offered  money  and  lands  to  induce 
that  illustrious  virgin  to  waver  in  her  resolution, 
but  without  success.  Her  inflexible  determination 
at  length  induced  her  husband  to  grant  her  oft- 
repeated  prayer ;  and  in  the  year  673  she  retired 
into  the  seclusion  of  monastic  life,*  and  building 
the  monastery  of  Ely,  devoted  her  days  to  the 
praise  and  glory  of  her  heavenly  King.  Her  pure 
and  pious  life  caused  others  speedily  to  follow  her 
example,  and  she  soon  became  the  virgin-mother  of 
a  numerous  progeny  dedicated  to  God.  A  series 
of  astounding  miracles  attended  her  monastic  life ; 
and  sixteen  years  after  her  death,  when  her  sister, 
the  succeeding  abbess,  opened  her  wooden  coffin 
to  transfer  her  body  to  a  more  costly  one  of  marble, 
that  "  holy  virgin  and  spouse  of  Christ "  was  found 
entirely  free  from  corruption  or  decay. f 

A  nunnery,  glorying  in  so  pure  a  foundress, 
grew  and  flourished,  and  for  "two  hundred  years 
existed  in  the  full  observance  of  monastic  disci- 
pline ;"  but  on  the  coming  of  the  Danes  in  the  year 
870,  those  sad  destroyers  of  religious  establisments 

*  She  seems  to  have  been  principally  encouraged  in  this  fanatical 
determination  by  Wilfrid;  probably  this  was  one  of  the  causes  of 
Ecgfrid's  displeasure  towards  him.  So  highly  was  the  purity  of  the 
body  regarded  in  the  early  Saxon  church,  that  Aldhelm  wrote  a 
piece  in  its  praise,  in  imitation  of  the  style  of  Sedulius,  but  in  most 
extravagant  terms.  Bede  wrote  a  poem,  solely  to  commemorate  the 
chastety  of  Etheldreda. 

"  Let  Maro  wars  in  loftier  nambers  sing 
I  sound  the  praises  of  our  heavenly  King ; 
Chaste  is  my  verse,  nor  Helen's  rape  I  write, 
Light  tales  like  these,  but  prove  the  mind  as  light." 

Beds' s  Eccl.  Hist,  by  Giles,  b.  iv.  c.  xx. 
t  Bede's  Eccl.  Hist.  b.  iv.  c.  xx. 


244  BIBLIOMANIA. 

laid  it  in  a  heap  of  ruins,  in  which  desolate  condi- 
tion it  remained  till  it  attracted  the  attention  of  the 
celebrated  Ethelwold,  who  under  the  patronage  of 
King  Edgar  restored  it ;  and  endowing  it  with  con- 
siderable privileges  appointed  Brithnoth,  Prior  of 
Winchester,  its  first  abbot.* 

Many  years  after,  when  Leoffin  was  abbot  there, 
and  Canute  was  king,  that  monarch  honored  the 
monastery  of  Ely  with  his  presence  on  several 
occasions.  Monkish  traditions  say,  that  on  one  of 
these  visits  as  the  king  approached,  he  heard  the 
pious  inmates  of  the  monastery  chanting  their  hymn 
of  praise ;  and  so  melodious  were  the  voices  of  the 
devotees,  that  his  royal  heart  was  touched,  and  he 
poured  forth  his  feelings  in  a  Saxon  ballad,  com- 
mencing thus : 

"  Merry  sang  the  monks  of  Ely, 
When  Canute  the  king  was  sailing  by ; 
Row  ye  knights  near  the  land. 
And  let  us  hear  these  monks  song.t 

It  reads  smoother  in  Strutt's  version ;  he  renders  it 

"  Cheerful  sang  the  monk  of  Ely, 
When  Canute  the  king  was  passing  by ; 
Row  to  the  shore  knights,  said  the  king. 
And  let  us  hear  these  churchmen  sing."i 

In  addition  to  the  title  of  a  poet,  Canute  has 
also  received  the  appellation  of  a  bibliomaniac. 
Dibdin,  in  his  bibliomania,  mentions  in  a  cursory 
manner  a  few  monkish  book  collectors,  and  intro- 

•  Saxon  Chronicle  translated  by  Ingram,  p.  ii8.  Dugdale's 
Monasticon,  vol.  i.  p.  458. 

t  Sharon  Turner's  Hist,  of  the  Anglo-Saxons,  vol.  ii.  p.  288. 
X  Strutt's  Saxon  Antiquities,  vol.  i.  p.  83. 


BIBLIOMANIA.  245 

duces  Canute  among  them.*  The  illuminated  man- 
uscript of  the  four  Gospels  in  the  Danish  tongue, 
now  in  the  British  Museum,  he  writes,  "and  once 
that  monarch's  own  book  leaves  not  the  shadow 
of  a  doubt  of  his  bibliomanical  charactef !"  I  cannot 
however  allow  him  that  title  upon  such  equivocal 
grounds ;  for  upon  examination,  the  MS.  turns  out 
to  be  in  the  Theotisc  dialect,  possessing  no  illu- 
minations of  its  own,  and  never  perhaps  once  in 
the  hands  of  the  royal  poet.f 

From  the  account  books  of  Ely  church  we  may 
infer  that  the  monks  there  enjoyed  a  tolerable 
library;  for  we  find  frequent  entries  of  money 
having  been  expended  for  books  and  materials  con- 
nected with  the  library;  thus  in  the  year  1300  we 
find  that  they  bought  at  one  time  five  dozen  parch- 
ment, four  pounds  of  ink,  eight  calf  and  four 
sheep-skins  for  binding  books ;  and  afterwards 
there  is  another  entry  of  five  dozen  vellum  and  six 
pair  of  book  clasps,  a  book  of  decretals  for  the 
library,  3s.,  a  Speculum  Gregor,  2s.,  and  ''Pro 
tabula  Paschalis  fac  denova  et  illuminand"  4s. J 
They  frequently  perhaps  sent  one  of  the  monks  to 
distants  parts  to  purchase  or  borrow  books  for 
their  library;  a  curious  instance  of  this  occurs 
under  the  year  1329,  when  they  paid  "the   pre- 

*  Dibdin's  Bibliomania,  p.  228. 

t  Dibdin  alludes  to  the  "  Harmony  of  the  Four  Gospels,"  pre- 
served among  the  Cotton  MSS.  Caligula,  A.  vii.  and  described  as 
*■*■  Harmonia  Evangeliorum,  lingua  Francica  capitulis,  71,  Liber 
quondam  {dicit  Jamesius)  Canuti  regis J*^  See  also  Hicke's  Gram. 
Franco-Theotisca,  p.  6.  But  there  is  no  ground  for  the  supposition 
that  it  belonged  to  Canute;  and  the  several  fine  historical  illumina- 
tions bound  up  with  it  are  evidently  of  a  much  later  age. 

X  An  entry  occurs  of  6s.  8d.  for  writing  two  processionals. 


246  BIBLIOMANIA. 

center  for  going  to  Balsham  to  enquire  for  books, 
6s.  7d."  The  bookbinder  two  weeks'  wages,  4s. ; 
twelve  iron  chains  to  fasten  books,  4s. ;  five  dozen 
vellum,  25s.  8d.  In  the  year  1396,  they  paid  their 
librarian  53s.  4d.,  and  a  tunic  for  his  services  during 
one  year.* 

Nigel,  Bishop  of  Ely,  by  endowing  the  Scripto- 
rium, enabled  the  monks  to  produce  some  excellent 
transcripts;  they  added  several  books  of  Cassio- 
dorus,  Bede,  Aldelem,  Radbert,  Andres,  etc.,  to 
the  library  ;f  and  they  possessed  at  one  time  no 
less  than  thirteen  fine  copies  of  the  Gospels,  which 
were  beautifully  bound  in  gold  and  silver.  J 

*  Stevenson's  Suppl.  to  Bentham's  church  of  Ely,  p.  52.  "  It 
is  worth  notice,"  says  Stevenson,  **  that  in  the  course  of  a  few  years, 
about  the  middle  of  the  14th  century,  the  precentor  purchased  up- 
wards of  seventy  dozen  parchment  and  thirty  dozen  vellum." 

f  Spelman  Antiquarii  Collectanea,  vol.  iii.  p.  273.  Nigel,  who 
was  made  bishop  in  1 133,  was  plundered  by  some  of  King  Stephen's 
soldiers,  and  robbed  of  his  own  copy  of  the  Gospels  which  he  had 
adorned  with  many  sacred  relics;  see  Anglia  Sacra,  i.  p.  622. 

X  WartotCs  Anglia  Sacra,  it  is  related  that  William  Longchamp, 
bishop  in  1199,  sold  them  to  raise  money  towards  the  redemption  of 
King  Richard,  pro  Regis  Ricardi  redemptione,  tom.  i.  633.  Dugd. 
Monast.  i.  p.  463. 


CHAPTER  XI. 


6V.  Albans. —  Willigod. — Bones  of  St.  Alban. — 
Eadmer. — Norman  Conquest. —  Paul  and  the 
Scriptorium. — Geoffry  de  Gorham. — Brekspere 
the  '"'Poor  Clerk.'' — Abbot  Simon  and  his  '^^multis 
voluminibus." — Raymond  the  Prior. —  Wentmore. 
—  Whet  hams  tede. —  Humphrey,  Duke  of  Glou- 
cester.— Lydgate. — Guy,  Earl  of  Warwick. 


\ 

HE  efficacy  of  "Good  Works"  was 
a  principle  ever  inculcated  by  the 
monks  of  old.  It  is  sad  to  reflect, 
that  vile  deeds  and  black  inten- 
tions were  too  readily  forgiven 
and  absolved  by  the  Church  on 
the  performance  of  some  good 
deed ;  or  that  the  monks  should  dare  to  shelter  or 
to  gloss  over  those  sins  which  their  priestly  duty 
bound  them  to  condemn,  because  forsooth  some 
wealthy  baron  could  spare  a  portion  of  his  broad 
lands  or  coffered  gold  to  extenuate  them.  But 
this  forms  one  of  the  dark  stains  of  the  monastic 
system ;  and  the  monks,  I  am  sorry  to  say,  were 
more  readily  inclined  to  overlook  the  blemish,  be- 


248  BIBLIOMANIA. 

cause  it  proved  so  profitable  to  their  order.  And 
thus  it  was,  that  the  proud  and  noble  monastery  of 
St.  Albans  was  endowed  by  a  murderer's  hand,  and 
built  to  allay  the  fierce  tortures  of  an  assassin's 
conscience.  Ethelbert,  king  of  the  East  Angles, 
fell  by  the  regal  hand  of  Offa,  king  of  Mercia ; 
and  from  the  era  of  that  black  and  guilty  deed 
many  a  fine  monastery  dates  its  origin  and  owes 
its  birth. 

St.  Alban's  was  founded,  as  its  name  implies,  in 
honor  of  the  English  protomartyr,  whose  bones 
were  said  to  have  been  discovered  on  that  interest- 
ing site,  and  afterwards  preserved  with  veneration 
in  the  abbey.  In  the  ancient  times,  the  building 
appears  to  have  covered  a  considerable  space,  and 
to  have  been  of  great  magnitude  and  power ;  for 
ruins  of  its  former  structure  mark  how  far  and  wide 
the  foundation  spreads. 

"  The  glorious  king  Offa,"  as  the  monks  in  their 
adulation  style  him,  richly  endowed  the  monastery 
on  its  completion,  as  we  learn  from  the  old  chron- 
icles of  the  abbey ;  and  a  succession  of  potent 
sovereigns  are  emblazoned  on  the  glittering  parch- 
ment, whose  liberalty  augmented  or  confirmed 
these  privileges.* 

Willigod,  the  first  abbot,  greatly  enriched  the 
monastery,  and  bestowed  especial  care  upon  the 
relics  of  St.  Alban.  It  is  curious  to  mark  how 
many  perils  those  shrivelled  bones  escaped,  and 
with  what  anxious  care  the  monks  preserved  them. 

*  See  a  fine  manuscript  in  the  Cotton  collection  marked  Nero 
D.  vii.,  and  another  marked  Claudius  E.  iv.,  both  of  which  I  have 
consulted. 


BIBLIOMANIA.  249 

In  the  year  930,  during  the  time  of  Abbot  Eadfrid, 
the  Danes  attacked  the  abbey,  and  after  many 
destroying  acts  broke  open  the  repository,  and 
carried  away  some  of  the  bones  of  St.  Alban  into 
their  own  country.  The  monks  took  greater  care 
than  ever  of  the  remaining  reHcs ;  and  their  anxiety 
for  their  safety,  and  the  veneration  with  which  they 
regarded  them,  is  curiously  illustrated  by  an  anec- 
dote of  Abbot  Leofric,  elected  in  the  year  1006. 
His  abbacy  was,  therefore,  held  in  troubled  times ; 
and  in  the  midst  of  fresh  invasions  and  Danish 
cruelties.  Fearing  lest  they  should  a  second  time 
reach  the  abbey,  he  determined  to  protect  by 
stratagem  what  he  could  not  effect  by  force.  After 
hiding  the  genuine  bones  of  St.  Alban  in  a  place 
quite  secure  from  discovery,  he  sent  an  open  mes- 
sage to  the  Abbot  of  Ely,  entreating  permission  to 
deposit  the  holy  relics  in  his  keeping ;  and  offering, 
as  a  plausible  reason,  that  the  monastery  of  Ely, 
being  surrounded  by  marshy  and  impenetrable 
bogs,  was  secure  from  the  approaches  of  the  bar- 
barians. He  accompanied  this  message  with  some 
false  relics — the  remains  of  an  old  monk  belonging 
to  the  abbey  enclosed  in  a  coffin— and  sent  with 
them  a  worn  antiquated  looking  mantle,  pretending 
that  it  formerly  belonged  to  Amphibalus,  the  master 
of  St.  Alban.f  The  monks  of  Ely  joyfully  received 
these  precious  bones,  and  displayed  perhaps  too 
much  eagerness  in  doing  so.  Certain  it  is,  that 
when  the  danger  was  past  and  the  quietude  of  the 

*  Matthew  Paris'  Edit.  Wats,  torn.  i.  p.  39. 
t  "  Asserens  ad  cantelam,  ipsum  fuisse  beati  Amphibali,  beate 
Albini  mag^stri,  caracellam." — Mat.  Paris,  p.  44. 


2SO  BIBLIOMANIA. 

country  was  restored,  Leofric,  on  applying  for  the 
restitution  of  these  *'holy  relics,"  found  some  dif- 
ficulty in  obtaining  them ;  for  the  Abbot  of  Ely 
attempted  by  equivocation  and  duplicity  to  retain 
them.  After  several  ineffectual  applications,  Leof- 
ric was  compelled,  for  the  honor  of  his  monastery, 
to  declare  the  '*  pious  fraud "  he  had  practised ; 
which  he  proved  by  the  testimony  of  several  monks 
of  his  fraternity,  who  were  witnesses  of  the  transac- 
tion. It  is  said,  that  Edward  the  Confessor  was 
highly  incensed  at  the  conduct  of  the  Abbot  of 
Ely. 

I  have  stated  elsewhere,  that  the  learned  and 
pious  ^Ifric  gave  the  monastery  many  choice 
volumes.  His  successor,  Ealdred,  abbot,  about  the 
year  955,  was  quite  an  antiquary  in  his  way  ;  and  no 
spot  in  England  afforded  so  many  opportunities  to 
gratify  his  taste  as  the  site  of  the  ancient  city  of 
Verulam.  He  commenced  an  extensive  search 
among  the  ruins,  and  rescued  from  the  earth  a  vast 
quantity  of  interesting  and  valuable  remains.  He 
stowed  all  the  stone-work  and  other  materials 
which  were  serviceable  in  building  away,  intending 
to  erect  a  new  edifice  for  the  monks  :  but  death 
prevented  the  consummation  of  these  designs. 
Eadmer,  his  successor,  a  man  of  great  piety  and 
learning,  followed  up  the  pursuit,  and  made  some 
important  accessions  to  these  stores.  He  found 
also  a  great  number  of  gold  and  silver  ornaments, 
specimens  of  ancient  art,  some  of  them  of  a  most 
costly  nature,  but  being  idols  or  figures  connected 
with  heathen  mythology,  he  cared  not  to  preserve 
them.     Matthew  Paris  is  prolix  in  his  account  of 


BIBLIOMANIA.  251 

the  operations  and  discoveries  of  this  abbot ;  and 
one  portion  of  it  is  so  interesting,  and  seems  so 
connected  with  our  subject,  that  I  cannot  refrain 
from  giving  it  to  the  reader.  "  The  abbot,"  he 
writes,  "whilst  digging  out  the  walls  and  searching 
for  the  ruins  which  were  buried  in  the  earth  in  the 
midst  of  the  ancient  city,  discovered  many  vestiges 
of  the  foundation  of  a  great  palace.  In  a  recess  in 
one  of  the  walls  he  found  the  remains  of  a  library, 
consisting  of  a  number  of  books  and  rolls ;  and 
among  them  a  volume  in  an  unknown  tongue,  and 
which,  although  very  ancient,  had  especially  escaped 
destruction.  This  nobody  in  the  monastery  could 
read,  nor  could  they  at  that  time  find  any  one  who 
understood  the  writing  or  the  idiom ;  it  was  ex- 
ceedingly ancient,  and  the  letters  evidently  were 
most  beautifully  formed ;  the  inscriptions  or  titles 
were  written  in  gold,  and  encircled  with  orna- 
ments ;  bound  in  oak  with  silken  bands,  which  still 
retained  their  strength  and  beauty ;  so  perfectly 
was  the  volume  preserved.  But  they  could  not 
conceive  what  the  book  was  about ;  at  last,  after 
much  search  and  diligent  inquiry,  they  found  a  very 
feeble  and  aged  priest,  named  Unwon,  who  was 
very  learned  in  writings  Uteris  bene  eruditum,  and 
imbued  with  the  knowledge  of  divers  languages. 
He  knew  directly  what  the  volume  was  about,  and 
clearly  and  fluently  read  the  contents ;  he  also  ex- 
plained the  other  Codices  found  in  the  same  library 
in  eodem  Almariolo  of  the  palace  with  the  greatest 
ease,  and  showed  them  to  be  written  in  the  charac- 
ters formerly  in  use  among  the  inhabitants  of  Veru- 
1am,  and  in  the  language  of  the  ancient  Britons. 


252  BIBLIOMANIA. 

Some,  however,  were  in  Latin  ;  but  the  book  before- 
mentioned  was  found  to  be  the  history  of  Saint 
Alban,  the  English  proto-martyr,  according  to  that 
mentioned  by  Bede,  as  having  been  daily  used  in 
the  church.  Among  the  other  books  were  disco- 
vered many  contrivances  for  the  invocation  and 
idolatrous  rites  of  the  people  of  Verulam,  in  which 
it  was  evident  that  Phoebus  the  god  Sol  was  es- 
pecially invoked  and  worshipped ;  and  after  him 
Mercury,  called  in  English  Woden,  who  was  the 
god  of  the  merchants.  The  books  which  contained 
these  diabolical  inventions  they  cast  away  and 
burnt ;  but  that  precious  treasure,  the  history  of 
Saint  Alban,  they  preserved,  and  the  priest  before- 
mentioned  was  appointed  to  translate  the  ancient 
English  or  British  into  the  vulgar  tongue.*  By 
the  prudence  of  the  Abbot  Eadmer,  the  brothers 
of  the  convent  made  a  faithful  copy,  and  diligently 
explained  it  in  their  public  teaching;  they  also 
translated  it  into  Latin,  in  which  it  is  now  known 
and  read ;  the  historian  adds  that  the  ancient  and 
original  copy,  which  was  so  curiously  written,  in- 
stantaneously crumbled  into  dust  and  was  destroyed 
for  ever.f 

Although  the  attention  of  the  Saxon  abbots 
was  especially  directed  to  literary  matters,  and  to 
the  affairs  connected  with  the  making  of  books,  we 
find  no  definite  mention  of  a  Scriptorium,  or  of 
manuscripts  having  been  transcribed  as  a  regular 
and  systematic  duty,   till  after  the  Norman  con- 

•  Abjectis  igitur  et  combustis  libris,  in  quibus  commenta  diaboli 
continabantur. 

f  MS.  Cottonian,  E.  iv.  fo.  loi;  Mat.  Paris,  Edit.  Wat.  i,  p.  41. 


BIBLIOMANIA,  253 

quest.  That  event  happened  during  the  abbacy  of 
Frederic,  and  was  one  which  greatly  influenced 
the  learning  of  the  monks.  Indeed,  I  regard  the 
Norman  conquest  as  a  most  propitious  event  for 
English  literature,  and  one  which  wrought  a  vast 
change  in  the  aspect  of  monastic  learning ;  the 
student  of  those  times  cannot  fail  to  perceive  the 
revolution  which  then  took  place  in  the  cloisters ; 
visibly  accomplished  by  the  installation  of  Norman 
bishops  and  the  importation  of  Norman  monks, 
who  in  the  well  regulated  monasteries  of  France  and 
Normandy  had  been  initiated  into  a  more  general 
course  of  study,  and  brought  up  in  a  better  system 
of  mental  training  than  was  known  here  at  that 
time. 

But  poor  Frederic,  a  conscientious  and  worthy 
monk,  suffered  severely  by  that  event,  and  was 
ultimately  obliged  to  seek  refuge  in  the  monastery 
of  Ely  to  evade  the  displeasure  of  the  new  sove- 
reign ;  but  his  earthly  course  was  well  nigh  run, 
for  three  days  after,  death  released  him  from  his 
worldly  troubles,  and  deprived  the  conqueror  of  a 
victim.  Paul,  the  first  of  the  Norman  abbots,  was 
appointed  by  the  king  in  the  year  1077.  He  was 
zealous  and  industrious  in  the  interest  of  the  abbey, 
and  obtained  the  restitution  of  many  lands  and 
possessions  of  which  it  had  been  deprived ;  he 
rebuilt  the  old  and  almost  ruined  church,  and  em- 
ployed for  that  purpose  many  of  the  materials 
which  his  predecessors  had  collected  from  the  ruins 
of  Verulam ;  and  even  now,  I  believe,  some  rem- 
nants of  these  Roman  tiles,  etc.,  may  be  discerned. 
He  moreover  obtained  many  important  grants  and 


254  BIBLIOMANIA. 

valuable  donations ;  among  others  a  layman  named 
Robert,  one  of  the  Norman  leaders,  gave  him  two 
parts  of  the  tythes  of  his  domain  at  Hatfield, 
which  he  had  received  from  the  king  at  the  dis- 
tribution. 

"  This  he  assigned,"  says  Matthew  Paris,  "  to 
the  disposal  of  Abbot  Paul,  who  was  a  lover  of  the 
Scriptures,  for  the  transcription  of  the  necessary 
volumes  for  the  monastery.  He  himself  indeed 
was  a  learned  soldier,  and  a  diligent  hearer  and 
lover  of  Scripture ;  to  this  he  also  added  the  tythes 
of  Redburn,  appointing  certain  provisions  to  be 
given  to  the  scribes ;  this  he  did  out  of  "  charity  to 
the  brothers  that  they  may  not  thereby  suffer,  and 
that  no  impediment  might  be  offered  to  the  writers. 
The  abbot  thereupon  sought  and  obtained  from 
afar  many  renowned  scribes,  to  write  the  necessary 
books  for  the  monastery.  And  in  return  for  these 
abundant  favors,  he  presented,  as  a  suitable  gift  to 
the  warlike  Robert,  for  the  chapel  in  his  palace  at 
Hatfield,  two  pair  of  vestments,  a  silver  cup,  a 
missal,  and  the  other  needful  books  (missale  cum 
aliis  libris  necessariis).  Having  thus  presented  to 
him  the  first  volumes  produced  by  his  liberality,  he 
proceeded  to  construct  a  scriptorium,  which  was 
set  apart  (^prcselectos)  for  the  transcription  of  books ; 
Lanfranc  supplied  the  copies.  They  thus  procured 
for  the  monastery  twenty-eight  notable  volumes 
{volumina  notabilid),  also  eight  psalters,  a  book  of 
collects,  a  book  of  epistles,  a  volume  containing 
the  gospels  for  the  year,  two  copies  of  the  gospels 
complete,  bound  in  gold  and  silver,  and  ornamented 
with  gems ;  besides  ordinals,  constitutions,  missals, 


BIBLIOMANIA,  255 

troapries,  collects,  and  other  books  for  the  use  of 
the  library.* 

Thus  blessed,  we  find  the  monks  of  St.  Albans 
for  ages  after  constantly  acquiring  fresh  treasures, 
and  multiplying  their  book  stores  by  fruitful  tran- 
scripts. There  is  scarce  an  abbot,  whose  portrait 
garnishes  the  fair  manuscript  before  me,  that  is 
not  represented  with  some  goodly  tomes  spread 
around  him,  or  who  is  not  mentioned  as  a  choice 
'' amator librorum'*  m  t\i&s&  vnonVish.  pages.  It  is 
a  singular  circumstance,  when  we  consider  how 
bookless  those  ages  are  supposed  to  have  been, 
that  the  illuminated  portraits  of  the  monks  are 
most  frequently  depicted  with  some  ponderous 
volume  before  them,  as  if  the  idea  of  a  monk  and 
the  study  of  a  book  were  quite  inseparable.  During 
my  search  among  the  old  manuscripts  quoted  in 
this  work,  this  fact  has  been  so  repeatedly  forced 
upon  my  attention  that  I  am  tempted  to  regard  it 
as  an  important  hint,  and  one  which  speaks  favor- 
ably for  the  love  of  books  and  learning  among  the 
cowled  devotees  of  the  monasteries. 

Passing  Richard  de  Albani,  who  gave  them  a 
copy  of  the  gospels,  a  missal  written  in  letters  of 
gold,  an  other  precious  volumes  whose  titles  are 
unrecorded,f  we  come  to  Geoffry,  a  native  of 
Gorham,  who  was  elected  abbot  in  the  year  11 19. 
He  had  been  invited  over  to  England  (before  he 
became  a  priest)  by  his  predecessor,  to  superintend 
the  school  of  St.  Albans ;  but  he  delayed  the  voyage 

*  MS.  Cottanian  Claudius,  E.  iv.  fo.  105  b.,  and  MS.  Cott. 
Nero,  D.  vii.  fo.  13,  b. 

f  He  was  elected  in  1093. — See  MS.  Cott.  Claud.  E.  iv.  fo.  107. 


256  BIBLIOMANIA. 

so  long,  that  on  his  arrival  he  found  the  appoint- 
ment already  filled;  on  this  he  went  to  Dunstable, 
where  he  read  lectures,  and  obtained  some  pupils. 
It  was  during  his  stay  there  that  he  wrote  the  piece 
which  has  obtained  for  him  so  much  reputation. 
Ubi  que7ida'm  ludum  de  Sancta  Katarince  quern 
miracula  vulgar  iter'  appellamus  fecit,  says  the  Cot- 
ton manuscripts,  on  the  vellum  page  of  which  he 
is  portrayed  in  the  act  of  writing  it.*  Geoff ry, 
from  this  passage,  is  supposed  to  be  the  first  author 
of  dramatic  literature  in  England;  although  the 
title  seems  somewhat  equivocal,  from  the  casual 
manner  in  which  his  famous  play  of  St.  Catherine 
is  thus  mentioned  by  Matthew  Paris.  Of  its  merits 
we  are  still  less  able  to  form  an  opinion  ;  for  nothing 
more  than  the  name  of  that  much  talked  of  miracle 
play  has  been  preserved.  We  may  conclude,  how- 
ever, that  it  was  performed  with  all  the  parapher- 
nalia of  scenery  and  characteristic  costume ;  for  he 
borrowed  of  the  sacrist  of  St.  Albans  some  copes 
for  this  purpose.  On  the  night  following  the 
representation  the  house  in  which  he  resided  was 
burnt ;  and,  says  the  historian,  all  his  books,  and 
the  copes  he  had  borrowed  were  destroyed.  Ren- 
dered poor  indeed  by  this  calamity,  and  somewhat 
reflecting  upon  himself  for  the  event,  he  assumed 
in  sorrow  and  despair  the  religious  habit,  and 
entered  the  monastery  of  St.  Albans ;  where  by 
his  deep  study,  his  learning  and  his  piety,  he  so 
gained  the  hearts  of  his  fraternity,  that  he  ultimately 
became  their  abbot.  He  is  said  to  have  been  very 
industrious  in  the  transcription  of  books ;  and  he 
•  Got.  MS.  Claud.  E.  iv.  fo.  io8. 


BIBLIOMANIA.  257 

"made  a  missal  bound  in  gold,  auro  ridimitum, 
and  another  in  two  volumes ;  both  incomparably 
illuminated  in  gold,  and  written  in  a  clear  and 
legible  hand ;  also  a  precious  Psalter  similarly 
illuminated;  a  book  containing  the  Benedictions 
and  the  Sacraments ;  a  book  of  Exorcisms,  and  a 
Collectaria."* 

Geoffry  was  succeeded  by  Ralph  de  Gebium  in 
the  year  1143 :  ^^  "^^^  a  monk  remarkable  for  his 
learning  and  his  bibliomanical  pursuits.  He  for- 
merly remained  some  time  in  the  services  of 
Alexander,  bishop  of  Lincoln,  and  gained  the 
esteem  of  that  prelate.  His  book-loving  passion 
arose  from  hearing  one  "  Master  Wodon,  of  Italy, 
expound  the  doctrines  of  the  Holy  Scriptures." 
He  from  that  time  became  a  most  enthusiastic 
amator  librorum;  and  collected,  with  great  dili- 
gence, an  abundant  multitude  of  books. f 

The  matters  in  which  he  was  concerned,  his 
donations  to  the  monastery,  and  the  anecdotes  of 
his  life,  are  all  unconnected  with  my  subject ;  so  that 
I  am  obliged  to  pass  from  this  interesting  monk, 
an  undoubted  bibliophile,  from  sheer  want  of  in- 
formation. I  cannot  but  regret  that  the  historian 
does  not  inform  us  more  fully  of  his  book  col- 
lecting pursuits;  but  he  is  especially  barren  on 
that  subject,  although  he  highly  esteems  him  for 
prosecuting  that  pleasing  avocation.  He  died  in 
the  year  1151,  in  the  fourteenth  of  King  Stephen, 
and  was  followed  by  Robert  de  Gorham,  who  is 

*  MS.  Cot.  Nero,  D.  vii.  fo.  15,  a;  and  MS.  Cot.  Claud,  e.  iv. 
t  Cot.  MS.   Claud.  E.  iv.   fo.   113.     "Ex  tunc  igitur  amator 
librorum  et  adquisiter  sedulus  multio  voluminibus  habundavit. 


258  BIBLIOMANIA. 

also  commemorated  as  a  bibliophile  in  the  pages 
of  the  Cotton  manuscripts ;  and  to  judge  from  his 
portrait,  and  the  intensity  with  which  he  pores  over 
his  volume,  he  was  a  hard  and  devoted  student. 
He  ordered  the  scribes  to  make  a  great  many 
books ;  indeed,  adds  Paris  the  historian,  who  was 
himself  somewhat  of  an  amator  librorum,  "more 
by  far  than  can  be  mentioned."*  From  another 
source  we  learn  that  these  books  were  most  sumpt- 
uously bound,  f 

During  the  days  of  this  learned  abbot  a  devout 
and  humble  clerk  asked  admission  at  the  abbey 
gate.  Aspiring  to  a  holy  life,  he  ardently  hoped, 
by  thus  spending  his  days  in  monastic  seclusion,  to 
render  his  heart  more  acceptable  to  God.  Hearing 
his  prayer,  the  monks  conducted  him  into  the 
presence  of  my  Lord  Abbot,  who  received  him 
with  compassionate  tenderness,  and  kindly  ques- 
tioned him  as  to  his  qualifications  for  the  duties 
and  sacred  responsibilities  of  the  monkish  priest- 
hood; for  even  in  those  dark  ages  they  looked  a 
little  into  the  learning  of  the  applicant  before  he 
was  admitted  into  their  fraternity.  But  alas !  the 
poor  clerk  was  found  wofully  deficient  in  this  res- 
pect, and  was  incapable  of  replying  to  the  questions 
of  my  Lord  Abbot,  who  thereupon  gently  answered, 
"  My  son,  tarry  awhile,  and  still  exercise  thyself  in 
study,  and  so  become  more  perfect  for  the  holy 
office." 

Abashed  and  disappointed,   he  retired  with  a 

*  Fecit  etiam  scribi  libros  plurimos;  quos  longum  esset  enar- 
TQXQ.—MaL  Paris  Edit.  Wat.  p.  89. 
t  Cot.  MS.  Nero  D.  vii.  fo.  16,  a. 


BIBLIOMANIA.  25^ 

kindling  blush  of  shame;  and  deeming  this  tem- 
porary repulse  a  positive  refusal  he  left  his  father- 
land, and  started  on  a  pilgrimage  to  France.* 
And  who  was  this  poor,  humble,  unlettered  clerk? 
Who  this  simple  layman,  whose  ignorance  rendered 
him  an  unfit  socius  for  the  plodding  monks  of  old 
St.  Albans  Abbey  ?  No  less  than  the  English 
born  Nicholas  Brekespere,  afterwards  his  Holiness 
Adrian  IV.,  Pope  of  Rome,  Vicar-apostolic  and 
successor  of  St.  Peter  ! 

Yes ;  still  bearing  in  mind  the  kind  yet  keen 
reproof  of  the  English  abbot,  on  his  arrival  in  a 
foreign  land  he  studied  with  all  the  depth  and 
intensity  of  despair,  and  soon  surpassed  his  com- 
panions in  the  pursuit  of  knowledge ;  and  became 
so  renowned  for  learning,  and  for  his  prudence, 
that  he  was  made  Canon  of  St.  Rufus.  His  sagacity, 
moreover,  caused  him  to  be  chosen,  on  three  sepa- 
rate occasions,  to  undertake  some  important  em- 
bassies to  the  apostolic  see ;  and  at  length  he  was 
elected  a  cardinal.  So  step  by  step  he  finally  be- 
came elevated  to  the  high  dignity  of  the  popedom. 
The  first  and  last  of  England's  sons  who  held  the 
keys  of  Peter. 

These  shadows  of  the  past — these  shreds  of  a 
forgotten  age — these  echoes  of  five  hundred  years, 
are  full  of  interest  and  instruction.  For  where 
shall  we  find  a  finer  example — a  more  cheering 
instance  of  what  perseverance  will  accomplish — or 
a  more  satisfactory  result  of  the  pursuit  of  know- 
ledge under  difficulties  ?  Not  only  may  these 
curious  facts  cheer  the  dull  student  now,  and  inspire 

*  MS.  Claud.  E.  iv.  fo.  114,  a. 


26o  BIBLIOMANIA. 

him  with  that  energy  so  essential  to  success,  but 
these  whisperings  of  old  may  serve  as  lessons  for 
ages  yet  to  come.  For  if  we  look  back  upon  those 
dark  days  with  such  feelings  of  superiority,  may 
not  the  wiser  generations  of  the  future  regard  us 
with  a  still  more  contemptuous,  yet  curious  eye  ? 
And  when  they  look  back  at  our  Franklins,  and 
our  Johnsons,  in  astonishment  at  such  fine  in- 
stances of  what  perseverance  could  do,  and  what 
energy  and  plodding  industry  could  accomplish, 
even  when  surrounded  with  the  difficulties  of  our 
ignorance ;  how  much  more  will  they  praise  this 
bright  example,  in  the  dark  background  of  the 
historicar tableaux,  who,  without  even  our  means  of 
obtaining  knowledge — our  libraries  or  our  talent — 
rose  by  patient,  hard  and  devoted  study,  from 
Brekespere  the  humble  clerk — the  rejected  of  St. 
Albans — to  the  proud  title  of  Vicar-apostolic  of 
Christ  and  Pope  of  Rome  ! 

Simon,  an  Englishman,  a  clerk  and  a  "man  of 
letters  and  good  morals,"  was  elected  abbot  in  the 
year  1167.  All  my  authorities  concur  in  bestowing 
upon  him  the  honor  and  praise  appertaining  to  a 
bibliomaniac.  He  was,  says  one,  an  especial  lover 
of  books,  librorum  amator  speciales :  and  another 
in  panegyric  terms  still  further  dubs  him  an  amaior 
scripturarum.  All  this  he  proved,  and  well  earned 
the  distinction,  by  the  great  encouragement  he  gave 
to  the  collecting  and  transcribing  of  books.  The 
monkish  pens  he  found  moving  too  slow,  and  yield- 
ing less  fruit  than  formerly.  He  soon,  however,  set 
them  hard  at  work  again ;  and  to  facilitate  their 
labors,  he  added  materially  to  the  comforts  of  the 


BIBLIOMANIA.  261 

Scriptorium  by  repairing  and  enlarging  it;  "and 
always,"  says  the  monk  from  whom  I  learn  this, 
"kept  two  or  three  most  choice  scribes  in  the 
Camera  (Scriptorium,)  who  sustained  its  reputation, 
and  from  whence  an  abundant  supply  of  the  most 
excellent  books  were  continually  produced.*  He 
framed  some  efficient  laws  for  its  management,  and 
ordered  that,  in  subsequent  times,  every  abbot 
should  keep  and  support  one  able  scribe  at  least. 
Among  the  '  many  choice  books  and  authentic 
volumes,*  volumina  authentica,  which  he  by  this 
care  and  industry  added  to  the  abbey  library,  was 
included  a  splendid  copy  of  the  Old  and  New 
Testament,  transcribed  with  great  accuracy  and 
beautifully  written — indeed,  says  the  manuscript 
history  of  that  monastery,  so  noble  a  copy  was 
nowhere  else  to  be  seen.f  But  besides  this.  Abbot 
Simon  gave  them  all  those  precious  books  which 
he  had  been  for  a  '  long  time '  collecting  himself  at 
great  cost  and  patient  labor,  and  having  bound 
them  in  a  sumptuous  and  marvellous  manner,J  he 
made  a  library  for  their  reception  near  the  tomb  of 
Roger  the  Hermit. §  He  also  bestowed  many  rich 
ornaments  and  much  costly  plate  on  the  monas- 
tery ;  and  by  a  long  catalogue  of  good  deeds,  too 
ample  to  be  inserted  here,  he  gained  the  affections 
and  gratitude  of  his  fraternity,  who  loudly  praised 
his  virtues  and  lamented  his  loss  when  they  laid 
him  in  his  costly  tomb.  There  is  a  curious  illumina- 
tion of  this  monkish  bibliophile  in  the  Cotton 
manuscript.      He   is  represented  deeply  engaged 

*  MS.  Cot.  Claud.  E.  iv.  fo.  125  b.  %  MS.  Cot.  Nero  D.  vii.  fo.  16  a. 
t  Ibid.  %  MS.  Cot.  Claud,  iv.  fo.  124. 


262  BIBLIOMANIA. 

with  his  studies  amidst  a  number  of  massy  volumes, 
and  a  huge  trunk  is  there  before  him  crammed  with 
rough  old  fashioned  large  clasped  tomes,  quite  en- 
ticing to  look  upon."* 

After  Simon  came  Garinus,  who  was  soon  suc- 
ceeded by  one  John.  Our  attention  is  arrested  by 
the  learned  renown  of  this  abbot,  who  had  studied 
in  his  youth  at  Paris,  and  obtained  the  unanimous 
praise  of  his  masters  for  his  assiduous  attention 
and  studious  industry.  He  returned  with  these 
high  honors,  and  was  esteemed  in  grammar  a 
Priscian,  in  poetry  an  Ovid,  and  in  physic  equal  to 
Galen.f  With  such  literary  qualifications,  it  was 
to  be  expected  the  Scriptorium  would  flourish  under 
his  government,  and  the  library  increase  under  his 
fostering  care.  Our  expectations  are  not  disap- 
pointed ;  for  many  valuable  additions  were  made 
during  his  abbacy,  and  the  monks  over  whom  he 
presided  gave  many  manifestations  of  refinement 
and  artistic  talent,  which  incline  us  to  regard  the 
ingenuity  of  the  cloisters  in  a  more  favorable  light. 
Raymond,  his  prior,  was  a  great  help  in  all  these 
undertakings.  His  industry  seems  to  have  been 
unceasing  in  beautifying  the  church,  and  looking 
after  the  transcription  of  books.  With  the  as- 
sistance of  Roger  de  Parco,  the  cellarer,  he  made  a 
large  table  very  handsome,  and  partly  fabricated 
of  metal.  He  wrote  two  copies  of  the  Gospels, 
and  bound  them  in  silver  and  gold  adorned  with 

*  Claud.  E,  iv.  fo.  124. 

t  "In  grammatica  Priscianus,  in  metrico  Ovidius,  in  physica 
censori  potuit  Galenus."  MS.  Cot.  Claud.  E.  iv.  f.  129,  b.  Matt, 
Paris'  Edit.  Wat.  p.  10^. 


BIBLIOMANIA.  263 

various  figures.  Brother  Walter  of  Colchester, 
with  Randulph,  Gubiuin  and  others,  produced  some 
very  handsome  paintings  comprising  the  evangelists 
and  many  holy  saints,  and  hung  them  up  in  the 
church.  "  As  we  have  before  mentioned,  by  the 
care  and  industry  of  the  lord  Raymond,  many  noble 
and  useful  books  were  transcribed  and  given  to 
the  monastery.  The  most  remarkable  of  these  was 
a  Historia  Scholastica,  with  allegories,  a  most 
elegant  book  —  liber  elegantissimus  exclaims  my 
monkish  authority.*  This  leads  me  to  say  some- 
thing more  of  my  lord  prior,  for  the  troubles  which 
the  conscientious  conduct  of  old  Raymond  brought 
upon  himself — 

"  Implores  the  passing  tribute  of  a  sigh." 

Be  it  known  then  that  William  de  Trompington 
succeeded  to  the  abbacy  on  the  death  of  John  ;  but 
he  was  a  very  different  man,  without  much  esteem 
for  learning ;  and  thinking  I  am  afraid  far  more  of 
the  world  and  heaven  or  the  Domus  Dei.  Alas ! 
memoirs  of  bad  monks  and  worldly  abbots  are 
sometimes  found  blotting  the  holy  pages  of  the 
monkish  annals.  Domus  Dei  est  porta  cceli,  said 
the  monks ;  and  when  they  closed  the  convent 
gates  they  did  not  look  back  on  the  world  again, 
but  entered  on  that  dull  and  gloomy  path  with  a 
full  conviction  that  they  were  leaving  all  and  fol- 
lowing Christ,  and  so  acting  in  accordance  with  his 
admonitions ;  but  those  who  soug-ht  the  convent  to 
forget  in  its  solitude  their  worldly  cares  and  worldly 
disappointments,  too  often   found  how  futile  and 

♦  MS.  Cot.  Claud.  E.  iv.  fo.  131.  b. 


264  BIBLIOMANIA. 

how  ineffectual  was  that  dismal  life  to  eradicate  the 
grief  of  an  overburdened  heart,  or  to  subdue  the 
violence  of  misguided  temper.  The  austerity  of 
the  monastic  rules  might  tend  to  conquer  passion 
or  moderate  despair,  but  there  was  little  within 
those  walls  to  drive  painful  recollections  of  the  out- 
ward world  away;  for  at  every  interval  between 
their  holy  meditations  and  their  monkish  duties, 
images  of  the  earth  would  crowd  back  upon  their 
minds,  and  wring  from  their  ascetic  hearts  tributes 
of  anguish  and  despair ;  and  so  we  find  the  writings 
and  letters  of  the  old  monks  full  of  vain  regrets 
and  misanthropic  thoughts,  but  sometimes  over- 
flowing with  the  most  touching  pathos  of  human 
misery.  Yet  the  monk  knew  full  well  what  his 
duty  was,  and  knew  how  sinful  it  was  to  repine  or 
rebel  against  the  will  of  God.  If  he  vowed  obe- 
dience to  his  abbot,  he  did  not  forget  that  obedience 
was  doubly  due  to  Him ;  and  strove  with  all  the 
strength  that  weak  humanity  could  muster,  to  forget 
the  darkness  of  the  past  by  looking  forward  with  a 
pious  hope  and  a  lively  faith  to  the  brightness  and 
glory  of  the  future.  By  constant  prayer  the  monk 
thought  more  of  his  God,  and  gained  help  to 
strengthen  the  faith  within  him ;  and  by  assiduous 
and  devoted  study  he  disciplined  his  heart  of  flesh 
— tore  from  it  what  lingering  affection  for  the  world 
remained,  and  deserting  all  love  of  earth  and  all 
love  of  kin,  purged  and  purified  it  for  his  holy 
calling,  and  closed  its  portals  to  render  it  inacces- 
sible to  all  sympathy  of  blood.  If  a  thought  of 
those  shut  out  from  him  by  the  monastic  walls  stole 
across  his  soul  and  mingled  with  his   prayer,  he 


BIBLIOMANIA.  265 

started  and  trembled  as  if  he  had  offered  up  an 
unholy  desire  in  the  supplication.  To  him  it  was 
a  proof  that  his  nature  was  not  yet  subdued ;  and  a 
day  of  study  and  meditation,  with  a  fast  unbroken 
till  the  rays  of  the  morrow's  sun  cast  their  li^ht 
around  his  little  cell,  absolved  the  sin,  and  broke 
the  tie  that  bound  him  to  the  world  without. 

If  this  violence  was  experienced  in  subduing 
the  tenderest  of  human  sympathy ;  how  much  more 
severe  was  the  conflict  of  dark  passions  only  half 
subdued,  or  malignant  depravity  only  partially  re- 
formed. These  dark  lines  of  human  nature  were 
sometimes  prominent,  even  when  the  monk  was 
clothed  in  sackcloth  and  ashes ;  and  are  markedly 
visible  in  the  life  of  William  de  Trompington.  But 
let  not  the  reader  think  that  he  was  appointed  with 
the  hearty  suffrages  of  the  fraternity,  he  was  elected 
at  the  recommendation  of  the  "  king,"  a  very  sig- 
nificant term  in  those  days  of  despotic  rule,  at 
which  choice  became  a  mere  farce.  "  Out  of  the 
fulness  of  the  heart  the  mouth  speaketh ;"  and  the 
monks  soon  began  to  perceive  with  regret  and 
trembling  the  worldly  ways  of  the  new  abbot,  which 
he  could  not  hide  even  under  his  abbatical  robes. 
In  a  place  dedicated  to  holy  deeds  and  heavenly 
thoughts,  worldly  conduct  or  unbridled  passion 
strikes  the  mind  as  doubly  criminal,  and  loads  the 
heart  with  dismay  and  suffering;  at  least  so  my 
lord  Prior  regarded  it,  whose  righteous  indignation 
could  no  longer  endure  these  manifestations  of  a 
worldly  mind.  So  he  gently  remonstrated  with  his 
superior,  and  hinted  at  the  impropriety  of  such 
conduct.    This  was  received  not  in  Christian  fellow- 


266  BIBLIOMANIA. 

ship,  but  with  haughty  and  passionate  displeasure ; 
and  from  that  day  the  fate  of  poor  Raymond  was 
irrevocably  sealed.  The  abbot  thinking  to  suppress 
the  dissatisfaction  which  was  now  becoming  general 
and  particularly  inconvenient,  sent  him  a  long  dis- 
tance off  to  the  cell  of  Tynmouth  in  Northumber- 
land, where  all  were  strangers  to  him.  Nor  could 
the  tears  of  the  old  man  turn  the  heart  of  his  cruel 
lord,  nor  the  rebellious  murmurings  of  the  brothers 
avail.  Thank  God  such  cases  are  not  very  fre- 
quent ;  and  the  reader  of  monkish  annals  will  not 
find  many  instances  of  such  cold  and  unfeeling 
cruelty  to  distress  his  studies  or  to  arouse  his 
indignation.  But  obedience  was  a  matter  of  course 
in  the  monastery ;  it  was  one  of  the  most  imperative 
duties  of  the  monk,  and  if  not  cheerfully  he  was 
compelled  to  manifest  alacrity  in  fulfilling  even  the 
most  unpleasant  mandate.  But  I  would  have  for- 
given this  transaction  on  the  score  of  expediency 
perhaps,  had  not  the  abbot  heaped  additional  insults 
and  cruelties  upon  the  aged  offender ;  but  his  books 
which  he  had  transcribed  with  great  diligence  and 
care,  he  forcibly  deprived  him  of,  violenter  spolia- 
tum,  and  so  robbed  him,  as  his  historian  says,  of 
all  those  things  which  would  have  been  a  comfort 
and  solace  to  his  old  age.* 

The  books  which  the  abbot  thus  became  dis- 
honestly possessed  of — for  I  cannot  regard  it  in 
any  other  light — we  are  told  he  gave  to  the  library 
of  the  monastery ;  and  he  also  presented  some 
books   to    more   than    one    neighboring    church,  f 

•  MS.  Cot.  Claud.  E.  iv.  fol.  135  b. 
t  Ibid.  fol.  141. 


BIBLIOMANIA.  267 

But  he  was  not  bookworm  himself,  and  dwelt  I 
suspect  with  greater  fondness  over  his  wealthy  rent 
roll  than  on  the  pages  of  the  fine  volumes  in  the 
monastic  library.  The  monks,  however,  amidst  all 
these  troubles  retained  their  love  of  books ;  indeed 
it  was  about  this  time  that  John  de  Basingstoke, 
who  had  studied  at  Athens,  brought  a  valuable 
collection  of  Greek  books  into  England,  and  greatly 
aided  in  diffusing  a  knowledge  of  that  language 
into  this  country.  He  was  deacon  of  Saint  Albans, 
and  taught  many  of  the  monks  Greek;  Nicholas, 
a  chaplain  there,  became  so  proficient  in  it,  that  he 
was  capable  of  greatly  assisting  bishop  Grostete  in 
translating  his  Testament  of  the  twelve  patriarchs 
into  Latin.* 

Roger  de  Northone,  the  twenty-fourth  abbot  of 
Saint  Albans,  gave  "many  valuable  and  choice 
books  to  the  monastery,"  and  among  them  the 
commentaries  of  Raymond,  Godfrey,  and  Bernard, 
and  a  book  containing  the  works  and  discourses  of 
Seneca.  His  bibliomaniacal  propensities,  and  his 
industry  in  transcribing  books,  is  indicated  by  an 
illumination  representing  this  worthy  abbot  deeply 
engrossed  with  his  ponderous  volumes.*]* 

I  have  elsewhere  related  an  anecdote  of  Wall- 
ingford,  abbot  of  St.  Albans,  and  the  sale  of  books 
effected  between  him  and  Richard  de  Bury.  It 
appears  that  rare  and  munificent  collector  gave 
many  and  various  noble  books,  multos  et  varios 
libros  nobiles,  to  the  monastery  of  St.  Albans  whilst 

*  MS.  Reg.  Brit.  Mus.  4  D.  viii.  4.     Wood's  Hist.  Oxon.  1-82, 
and  Matt.  Paris.     Turner's  Hist,  of  Eng.  vol.  iv.  p.  180. 
t  MS.  Cot.  Nero,  D.  vii.  fol.  19  a. 


268  BIBLIOMANIA. 

he  was  bishop  of  Durham.*  Michael  de  Went- 
more  succeeded  Wallingford,  and  proved  a  very 
valuable  benefactor  to  the  monastery ;  and  by  wise 
regulations  and  economy  greatly  increased  the 
comforts  and  good  order  of  the  abbey.  He  gave 
many  books,  plures  libros,  to  the  library,  besides 
two  excellent  Bibles,f  one  for  the  convent  and  one 
for  the  abbot's  study,  and  to  be  kept  especially  for 
his  private  reading ;  an  ordinal,  very  beautiful  to 
look  upon,  being  sumptuously  bound.J  Indeed,  so 
multis  voluminibus  did  he  bestow,  that  he  expended 
more  than  loo/.  in  this  way,  an  immense  sum  in 
those  old  days,  when  a  halfpenny  a  day  was  deemed 
fair  wages  for  a  scribe. § 

Wentmore  was  succeeded  by  Thomas  de  la 
Mare,  a  man  of  singular  learning,  and  remarkable 
as  a  patron  of  it  in  others ;  it  was  probably  by  his 
direction  that  John  of  Tynmouth  wrote  his  Sancti- 
logium  Britannse,  for  that  work  was  dedicated  to 
him.  A  copy,  presented  by  Thomas  de  la  Mare  to 
the  church  of  Redburn,  is  in  the  British  Museum, 
much  injured  by  fire,  but  retaining  at  the  end  the 
following  lines  : 

"  Hunc  librum  dedet  Dominus  Thomas  de  la  Mare,  Albas 
monasterii  S.  Albani  Anglorum  Proto  martyris  Deo  at 
Ecclesise  B.  Amphibali  de  Redburn,  ut  fratris  indem  in 
cursu  existentus  per  ejus  lecturam  poterint  ccelestibus 
instrui,  et  per  Sanctorum  exempla  virtutibus  insignixi."|| 

But  there  are  few  who  have  obtained  so  much 
reputation  as  John  de  Whethamstede,  perhaps  the 

•  Ibid.  fol.  86.  %  MS.  Cot.  Nero  D.  vii.  fo.  20  b. 

f  Duos  bonas  biblias.  ||  MS.  Cot.  Tiberius,  E.  i. 

i  MS.  Cot.  Claud,  E.  iv.  fo.  229  b. 


BIBLIOMANIA,  269 

most  learned  abbot  of  this  monastery.  He  was 
formerly  monk  of  the  cell  at  Tynmouth,  and  after- 
wards prior  of  Gloucester  College  at  Oxford,  from 
whence  he  was  appointed  to  the  government  of 
St.  Albans.  Whethamstede  was  a  passionate  biblio- 
maniac, and  when  surrounded  with  his  books  he 
cared  little,  or  perhaps  from  the  absence  of  mind 
so  often  engendered  by  the  delights  of  study,  he 
too  frequently  forgot,  the  important  affairs  of  his 
monastery,  and  the  responsible  duties  of  an  abbot ; 
but  absorbed  as  he  was  with  his  studies,  Whet- 
hamstede was  not  a  mere 

"  Bookful  blockhead  ignorantly  read 

With  loads  of  learned  lumber  in  his  head." 

It  is  true  he  was  an  inveterate  reader,  amorously 
inclined  towards  vellum  tomes  and  illuminated 
parchments;  but  he  did  not  covet  them  like 
some  collectors  for  the  mere  pride  of  possessing 
them,  but  gloried  in  feasting  on  their  intellectual 
charms  and  delectable  wisdom,  and  sought  in  their 
attractive  pages  the  means  of  becoming  a  better 
Christian  and  a  wiser  man.  But  he  was  so  ex- 
cessively fond  of  books,  and  became  so  deeply 
engrossed  with  his  book-collecting  pursuits,  that  it 
is  said  some  of  the  monks  showed  a  little  dissatis- 
faction at  his  consequent  neglect  of  the  affairs  of 
the  monastery ;  but  these  are  faults  I  cannot  find 
the  heart  to  blame  him  for,  but  am  inclined  to  con- 
sider his  conduct  fully  redeemed  by  the  valuable 
encouragement  he  gave  to  literature  and  learning. 
Generous  to  a  fault,  abundant  in  good  deeds  and 
costly  expenditure,  he  became  involved  in  pecuniary 


270  BIBLIOMANIA. 

difficulties,  and  found  that  the  splendor  and  wealth 
which  he  had  scattered  so  lavishly  around  his 
monastery,  and  the  treasures  with  which  he  had 
adorned  the  library  shelves,  had  not  only  drained 
his  ample  coffers,  but  left  a  large  balance  unsatis- 
fied. Influenced  by  this  circumstance,  and  the 
murmurings  of  the  monks,  and  perhaps  too,  hoping 
to  obtain  more  time  for  study  and  book-collecting, 
he  determined  to  resign  his  abbacy,  and  again 
become  a  simple  brother.  The  proceedings  relative 
to  this  affair  are  curiously  related  by  a  contem- 
porary, John  of  Amersham.*  In  Whethamstede's 
address  to  the  monks  on  this  occasion,  he  thus 
explains  his  reasons  for  the  step  he  was  about  to 
take.  After  a  touching  address,  wherein  he  in- 
timates his  determination,  he  says,f  "  Ye  have 
known  moreover  how,  from  the  first  day  of  my 
appointment  even  until  this  day,  assiduously  and 
continually  without  any  intermission  I  have  shown 
singular  solicitude  in  four  things,  to  wit,  in  the 
erection  of  conventual  buildings,  in  the  writing  of 
books,  in  the  renewal  of  vestments,  and  in  the 
acquisition  of  property.  And  perhaps,  by  reason 
of  this  solicitude  of  mine,  ye  conceive  that  I  have 
fallen  into  debt ;  yet  that  you  may  know,  learn 
and  understand  what  is  in  this  matter  the  certain 
and  plain  truth,  and  when  ye  know  it  ye  may  report 
it  unto  others,  know  ye  for  certain,  yea,  for  most 

•  MS.  Cot.  Claud,  D.  i.  fo.  165,  "Acta  Johannis  Abbatis  per 
Johannem  Agmundishamensem  monachum  S.  Albani." 

t  Gibson's  Hist.  Monast.  Tynmouth,  vol.  ii.  p.  62,  whose  trans- 
lation I  use  in  giving  the  following  extract.  If  the  reader  refers  to 
Mr.  Gibson's  handsome  volumes,  he  will  find  much  interesting  and 
curious  matter  from  John  of  Amersham  relative  to  this  matter. 


BIBLIOMANIA.  271 

certain,  that  for  all  these  things  about  which,  and 
in  which  I  have  expended  money,  I  am  not  indebted 
to  any  one  living  more  than  10,000  marks  ;  but  that 
1  wish  freely  to  acknowledge  this  debt,  and  so  to 
make  satisfaction  to  every  creditor,  that  no  survivor 
of  any  one  in  the  world  shall  have  to  demand  any- 
thing from  my  successor." 

The  monks  on  hearing  this  declaration  were 
sorely  affected,  and  used  every  persuasion  to  induce 
my  lord  abbot  to  alter  his  determination,  but  with- 
out success ;  so  that  they  were  compelled  to  seek 
another  in  whom  to  confide  the  government  of 
their  abbey.  Their  choice  fell  upon  John  Stokes, 
who  presided  over  them  for  many  years  ;  but  at  his 
death  the  love  and  respect  which  the  brothers 
entertained  for  Whethamstede,  was  manifested 
by  unanimously  electing  him  again,  an  honor  which 
he  in  return  could  not  find  the  heart  to  decline. 
But  during  all  this  time,  and  after  his  restoration, 
he  was  constantly  attending  to  the  acquisition  of 
books,  and  numerous  were  the  transcripts  made 
under  his  direction  by  the  scribes  and  enriched  by 
his  munificence,  for  some  of  the  most  costly  copies 
produced  in  that  century  were  the  fruits  of  their 
labor;  during  his  time  there  were  more  volumes 
transcribed  than  in  that  of  any  other  abbot  since 
the  foundation  of  the  abbey,  says  the  manuscript 
from  whence  I  am  gleaning  these  details,  and  adds 
that  the  number  of  them  exceeded  eighty-seven. 
He  commenced  the  transcription  of  the  great  com- 
mentary of  Nicholas  de  Lyra  upon  the  whole  Bible, 
which  had  then  been  published  some  few  years. 
"  Det    Deus,  ut  in   nostris   felicem  habere  valeat 


2/2  BIBLIOMANIA. 

consummacionem,"*  exclaims  the  monk,  nor  will 
the  reader  be  surprised  at  the  expression,  if  he  for 
one  moment  contemplates  the  magnitude  of  the 
undertaking. 

But  not  only  was  Whethamstede  remarkable  as 
a  bibliomaniac — he  claims  considerable  respect  as 
an  author.  Some  of  his  productions  were  more 
esteemed  in  his  own  time  than  now;  being  com- 
pilations and  commentaries  more  adapted  as  a 
substitute  for  other  books,  than  valuable  as  original 
works.  Under  this  class  I  am  inclined  to  place  his 
Granarium,  a  large  work  in  five  volumes ;  full  of 
miscellaneous  extracts,  etc.,  and  somewhat  par- 
taking of  the  encyclopediac  form  ;  his  Propinarium, 
in  two  volumes,  also  treating  of  general  matters ; 
his  Pabularium  and  Palearium  Poetarium,  and  his 
Proverbiarium,  or  book  of  Proverbs ;  to  which  may 
be  added  the  many  pieces  relating  to  the  affairs  of 
the  monastery.  But  far  different  must  we  regard 
many  of  his  other  productions,  which  are  more  im- 
portant in  a  literary  point  of  view,  as  calling  for  the 
exercise  of  a  refined  and  cultivated  mind,  and  no 
small  share  of  critical  acumen.  Among  these  I 
must  not  forget  to  include  his  Chronicle,f  which 
spreading  over  a  space  of  twenty  years,  forms  a 
valuable  historical  document.  The  rest  are  poetical 
narratives,  embracing  an  account  of  Jack  Cade's 
insurrection — the  battles  of  Ferrybridge,  Wake- 
field, and  St.  Albans.J 

*  Otterb.  cxvi.;  see  also  MS.  Cot.  Nero.  vii.  fo.  32  a. 

t  Otterboume  Hist,  a  Hearne,  edit.  Oxon,  1732,  torn.  i.  2. 

X  Cough's  Sepulchral  Monuments,  vol.  ii.  pt.  11,  p.  205.  For 
a  list  of  his  works  see  Bale;  also  Pits.  p.  630,  who  enumerates  more 
than  thirty. 


BIBLIOMANIA.  273 

A  Cottonian  manuscript  contained  a  catalogue 
of  the  books  which  this  worthy  abbot  compiled,  or 
which  were  transcribed  under  his  direction  :  unfor- 
tunately it  was  burnt,  with  many  others  forming 
part  of  that  inestimable  collection.*  From  another 
source  we  learn  the  names  of  some  of  them,  and 
the  cost  incurred  in  their  transcription.-|-  Twenty 
marks  were  paid  for  copying  his  Granarium,  in  four 
volumes ;  forty  shillings  for  his  Palearium ;  the 
same  for  a  Polycraticon  of  John  of  Salisbury;  five 
pounds  for  a  Boethius,  with  a  gloss ;  upwards  of 
six  pounds  for  "  a  book  of  Cato,"  enriched  with  a 
gloss  and  table  ;  and  four  pounds  for  Gorham  upon 
Luke.  Whethamstede  ordered  a  Grael  to  be 
written  so  beautifully  illuminated,  and  so  superbly 
bound,  as  to  be  valued  at  the  enormous  sum  of 
twenty  pounds  :  but  let  it  be  remembered  that  my 
Lord  Abbot  was  a  very  epicure  in  books,  and 
thought  a  great  deal  of  choice  bindings,  tall  copies, 
immaculate  parchment,  and  brilliant  illuminations, 
and  the  high  prices  which  he  freely  gave  for  these 
book  treasures  evince  how  sensible  he  was  to  the 
joys  of  bibliomania;  nor  am  I  inclined  to  regard 
the  works  thus  attained  as  "  mere  monastic  trash."  J 

The  finest  illumination  in  the  Cotton  manuscript 
is  a  portrait  of  Abbot  Whethamstede,  which  for 
artistic  talent  is  far  superior  to  any  in  the  volume. 
Eight  folios  are  occupied  with  an  enumeration  of 

•  Marked  Otho,  b.  iv. 

t  MS.  Arundel.  Brit.  Mus.  clxiii.  c.  A  curious  Register,  "per 
magistrum  Johannem  Whethamstede  et  dominum  Thoman  Ram- 
ryge,"  fo.  74,  75.  Upwards  of  fifty  volumes  are  specified,  with  the 
cost  of  each. 

X  Julius  Caesar  was  among  them. — Cot.  MS.  Claud,  d.  i.  fo.  156. 


274  BIBLIOMANIA, 

the  "  good  works  "  of  this  liberal  monk  :  among  the 
items  we  find  the  sum  of  forty  pounds  having  been 
expended  on  a  reading  desk,  and  four  pounds  for 
writing  four  Antiphoners.  *  He  displayed  also 
great  liberality  of  spirit  in  his  benefactions  to 
Gloucester  College,  at  Oxford,  besides  great  pecu- 
niary aid.  He  built  a  library  there,  and  gave  many 
valuable  books  for  the  use  of  the  students,  in  which 
he  wrote  these  verses  : 

Fratribus  Oxonice  datur  in  minus  liber  iste, 
Per  patrem  pecorem  prothomartyris  Angligenorum : 
Quern  si  quis  rapiat  ad  partem  sive  reponat, 
Vel  Judse  loqueum,  vel  furcas  sentiat;  Amen. 

In  others  he  wrote — 

Discior  ut  docti  fieret  nova  regia  plebi 
Culta  magisque  deae  datur  hie  liber  ara  Minerva, 
Hie  qui  diis  dietis  libant  holocausta  ministrias. 
Et  cirre  bibulam  sitiunt  prae  neetare  lympham, 
Estque  librique  loei,  idem  datur,  actor  et  unus.t 

If  we  estimate  worth  by  comparison,  we  must 
award  a  large  proportion  to  this  learned  abbot. 
Living  in  the  most  corrupt  age  of  the  monastic 
system,  when  the  evils  attendant  on  luxurious  ease 
began  to  be  too  obvious  in  the  cloister,  and  when 

*  MS.  Cod.  Nero,  D.  vii.  fo.  28  a.  He  "enlarged  the  abbot's 
study,"  fo.  29,  which  most  monasteries  possessed.  Whethamstede 
had  a  study  also  at  his  manor  at  Tittinhanger,  and  had  inscribed  on 
it  these  lines : 

'•  Ipse  Johannis  amor  Whethamstede  ubique  proclamor 
Ejus  et  alter  honor  hie  lucis  in  auge  reponer." 

See  also  MS.  Cot.  Claud.  D.  i.  fo.  157,  for  an  account  of  his  many 
donations. 

t  Weever's  Funerall  Monuments,  p.  562  to  567.  I  have  for- 
gotten to  mention  before  that  Whethamstede  built  a  new  library  for 
the  abbey  books,  and  expended  considerably  more  than  ;^I20  upon 
the  building. 


BIBLIOMANIA.  275 

complaints  were  heard  at  first  in  a  whispering 
murmur,  but  anon  in  a  stern  loud  voice  of  wroth 
and  indignant  remonstrance — when  in  fact  the 
progressive,  inquiring  spirit  of  the  reformation  was 
taking  root  in  what  had  hitherto  been  regarded  as 
a  hard,  dry,  stony  soil.  This  coming  tempest,  only 
heard  as  yet  like  the  lulling  of  a  whisper,  was 
nevertheless  sufficiently  loud  to  spread  terror  and 
dismay  among  the  cowled  habitants  of  the  monas- 
teries. That  quietude  and  mental  ease  so  indis- 
pensable to  study — so  requisite  for  the  growth  of 
thought  and  intellectuality,  was  disturbed  by  these 
distant  sounds,  or  dissipated  by  their  own  indo- 
lence. And  yet  in  the  midst  of  all  this,  rendered 
still  more  anxious  and  perplexing  by  domestic 
troubles  and  signs  of  discontent  and  insubordination 
among  the  monks.  Whethamstede  found  time,  and 
what  was  better  the  spirit,  for  literary  and  biblio- 
manical  pursuits.  Honor  to  the  man,  monk  though 
he  be,  who  oppressed  with  these  vicissitudes  and 
cares  could  effect  so  much,  and  could  appreciate 
both  literature  and  art. 

Contemporary  with  him  we  are  not  surprised 
that  he  gained  the  patronage  and  friendship  of 
Humphrey  Duke  of  Gloucester,  to  whom  he  dedi- 
cated many  of  his  own  performances,  and  greatly 
aided  in  collecting  those  treasures  which  the  duke 
regarded  with  such  esteem.  It  is  said  that  noble 
collector  frequently  paid  a  friendly  visit  to  the 
abbey  to  inspect  the  work  of  the  monkish  scribes, 
and  perhaps  to  negociate  for  some  of  those  choice 
vellum  tomes  for  which  the  monks  of  that  monas- 
tery were  so  renowned. 


276  BIBLIOMANIA. 

But  we  must  not  pass  the  "  good  duke  "  without 
some  slight  notice  of  his  "  ryghte  valiant  deedes," 
his  domestic  troubles  and  his  dark  mysterious  end. 
Old  Foxe  thus  speaks  of  him  in  his  Actes  and 
Monuments  :  "  Of  manners  he  seemed  meeke  and 
gentle,  louing  the  commonwealth,  a  supporter  of 
the  poore  commons,  of  wit  and  wisdom,  discrete 
and  studious,  well  affected  to  religion  and  a  friend 
to  verity,  and  no  lesse  enemy  to  pride  and  ambi- 
tion, especially  in  haughtie  prelates,  which  was  his 
undoing  in  this  present  evil  world.  And,  which  is 
seldom  and  rare  in  such  princes  of  that  calling,  he 
was  both  learned  himselfe  and  no  lesse  given  to 
studie,  and  also  a  singular  favourer  and  patron  to 
those  who  were  studious  and  learned."*  To  which 
I  cannot  refrain  from  adding  the  testimony  of 
Hollingshed,  who  tells  us  that  "  The  ornaments 
of  his  mind  were  both  rare  and  admirable ;  the 
feats  of  chiualrie  by  him  commensed  and  atchiued 
valiant  and  fortunate ;  his  grauitie  in  co.unsell  and 
soundnesse  of  policie  profound  and  singular ;  all 
which  with  a  traine  of  other  excellent  properties 
linked  together,  require  a  man  of  manifold  gifts  to 
aduance  them  according  to  their  dignitie.  I  refer 
the  readers  unto  Maister  Foxe's  booke  of  Actes 
and  Monuments.  Onelie  this  I  ad,  that  in  respect 
of  his  noble  indowments  and  his  demeanor  full  of 
decencie,  which  he  dailie  used,  it  seemeth  he  might 
wel  haue  giuen  this  prettie  poesie  :  " 

"  Virtute  duce  non  sanguine  nitor."t 

•  Foxe's  Actes  and  Monuments,  folio,  Lond.  1576,  p.  679. 
t  Holingshed  Chronicle,  fol.  1587,  vol.  ii.  p.  627. 


BIBLIOMANIA.  277 

But  with  all  these  high  qualities,  our  notions  of 
propriety  are  somewhat  shocked  at  the  open 
manner  in  which  he  kept  his  mistress  Eleanor 
Cobham ;  but  we  can  scarcely  agree  in  the  con- 
demnation of  the  generality  of  historians  for  his 
marrying  her  afterwards,  but  regard  it  rather  as 
the  action  of  an  honorable  man,  desirous  of  making 
every  reparation  in  his  power.*  But  the  "pride  of 
birth"  was  sorely  wounded  by  the  espousals;  and 
the  enmity  of  the  aristocracy  already  roused,  now 
became  deeply  rooted.  Eleanor's  disposition  is 
represented  as  passionate  and  unreasonable,  and 
her  mind  sordid  and  oppressive.  Be  this  how  it 
may,  we  must  remember  that  it  is  from  her  enemies 
we  learn  it ;  and  if  so,  unrelenting  persecution  and 
inveterate  malice  were  proceedings  ill  calculated  to 
soothe  a  temper  prone  to  violence,  or  to  elevate  a 
mind  undoubtedly  weak.  But  the  vindictive  and 
haughty  cardinal  Beaufort  was  the  open  and  secret 
enemy  of  the  good  duke  Humphrey  ;  for  not  only 
did  he  thwart  every  public  measure  proposed  by 
his  rival,  but  employed  spies  to  insinuate  them- 
selves into  his  domestic  circle,  and  to  note  and 
inform  him  of  every  little  circumstance  which  malice 
could  distort  into  crime,  or  party  rage  into  treason. 
This  detestable  espionage  met  with  a  too  speedy 
success.  The  duke,  who  was  especially  fond  of 
the  society  of  learned  men,  retained  in  his  family 
many  priests  and  clerks,  and  among  them  one 
Roger  Bolingbroke,  "  a  famous  necromancer  and 
astronomer."  This  was  a  sufficient  ground  for  the 
enmity  of  the  cardinal  to  feed  upon,  and  he  deter- 
*  See  Stowe,  p.  367. 


278  BIBLIOMANIA. 

mined  to  annihilate  at  one  blow  the  domestic 
happiness  of  his  rival.  He  arrested  the  Duchess, 
Bolingbroke,  and  a  witch  called  Margery  Gourdi- 
main,  or  Jourdayn,  on  the  charge  of  witchcraft  and 
treason.  He  accused  the  priest  and  Margery  of 
making,  and  the  duchess  for  having  in  her  posses- 
sion, a  waxen  figure,  which,  as  she  melted  it  before 
a  slow  fire,  so  would  the  body  of  the  king  waste  and 
decay,  and  his  marrow  wither  in  his  bones.  Her 
enemies  tried  her,  and  of  course  found  her  and  her 
companions  guilty,  though  without  a  shred  of 
evidence  to  the  purpose.  The  duchess  was  sen- 
tenced to  do  penance  in  St.  Paul's  and  two  other 
churches  on  three  separate  days,  and  to  be  after- 
wards imprisoned  in  the  Isle  of  Man  for  life. 
Bolingbroke,  who  protested  his  innocence  to  the 
last,  was  hung  and  quartered  at  Tyburn ;  and 
Margery,  the  witch  of  Eye,  as  she  was  called,  was 
burnt  at  Smithfield.  But  the  black  enmity  of  the 
cardinal  was  sorely  disappointed  at  the  effect  pro- 
duced by  this  persecution.  He  reasonably  judged 
that  no  accusation  was  so  likely  to  arouse  a  popular 
prejudice  against  duke  Humphrey  as  appealing  to 
the  superstition  of  the  people  who  in  that  age  were 
ever  prone  to  receive  the  most  incredulous  fabrica- 
tions; but  far  different  was  the  impression  made  in 
the  present  case.  The  people  with  more  than  their 
usual  sagacity  saw  through  the  flimsy  designs  of 
the  cardinal  and  his  faction  ;  and  while  they  pitied 
the  victims  of  party  malice,  loved  and  esteemed  the 
good  duke  Humphrey  more  than  ever. 

But  the  intriguing  heart  of  Beaufort  soon  re- 
solved  upon    the   most   desperate   measures,   and 


BIBLIOMANIA.  279 

shrunk  not  from  staining  his  priestly  hands  with 
innocent  and  honorable  blood.  A  parliament  was 
summoned  to  meet  at  St.  Edmunds  Bury,  in  Suf- 
folk, on  the  loth  of  February,  1447,  at  which  all 
the  nobility  were  ordered  to  assemble.  On  the 
arrival  of  Duke  Humphrey,  the  cardinal  arrested 
him  on  a  groundless  charge  of  high  treason,  and  a 
few  days  after  he  was  found  dead  in  his  bed,  his 
enemies  gave  out  that  he  had  died  of  the  palsy ; 
but  although  his  body  was  eagerly  shown  to  the 
sorrowing  multitude,  the  people  believed  that  their 
friend  and  favorite  had  been  foully  murdered,  and 
feared  not  to  raise  their  voice  in  loud  accusations 
at  the  Suffolk  party;  "sum  sayed  that  he  was 
smouldered  betwixt  two  fetherbeddes,"*  and  others 
declared  that  he  had  suffered  a  still  more  barbarous 
death.  Deep  was  the  murmuring  and  the  grief  of 
the  people,  for  the  good  duke  had  won  the  love 
and  esteem  of  their  hearts ;  and  we  can  fully 
believe  a  contemporary  who  writes — 

"  Compleyne  al  Yngland  thys  goode  Lorde's  deth."t 

Perhaps  none  suffered  more  by  his  death  than  the 
author  and  the  scholar ;  for  Duke  Humphrey  was 
a  munificent  patron  of  letters,  and  loved  to  corre- 
spond with  learned  men,  many  of  whom  dedicated 
their  works  to  him,  and  received  ample  encourage- 
ment in  return. J     Lydgate,  who  knew  him  well, 

*  Leland  Collect,  vol.  i.  p.  494. 

t  MS.  Harleian,  No.  2251,  fol.  7  b. 

%  Capgrave's  Commentary  on  Genesis,  in  Oriel  College,  Cod. 
MSS.  32,  is  dedicated  to  him.  Aretine's  Trans.  Aristotle's  Politics, 
MS.  Bodl.  D.  i.  8-10.  Pet.  de  Monte  de  Virt.  de  Vit.  MS.  Norvic. 
More,  257.  Bibl.  publi  Cantab.  Many  others  are  given  in  Warton's 
Hist,  of  Poetry,  4to,  vol.  ii.  pp.  48-50. 


280  BIBLIOMANIA. 

composed  some  of  his  pieces  at  the  duke's  instiga- 
tion. In  his  Tragedies  of  Ihon  Bochas  he  thus 
speaks  of  him  : 

"  Duke  of  Glocester  men  this  prynce  call, 
And  not  withstandyng  his  estate  and  dignitie, 
His  courage  neuer  dothe  appall 
To  study  in  bokes  of  antiquitie ; 
Therein  he  hath  so  great  felicitie, 
Virtuously  him  selfe  to  occupye, 
Of  vycious  slouthe,  he  hath  the  maistry. 

And  for  these  causes  as  in  his  entent 

To  shewe  the  untrust  of  all  worldly  thinge, 

He  gave  to  me  in  commandment 

As  him  seemed  it  was  ryghte  well  fittynge 

That  I  shoulde,  after  my  small  cunning, 

This  boke  translate,  him  to  do  pleasaunce, 

To  shew  the  chaung  of  worldly  variaunce. 

And  with  support  of  his  magnificence 
Under  the  wynges  of  his  correction, 
Though  that  I  lacke  of  eloquence 
I  shall  proceede  in  this  translation. 
Fro  me  auoydyng  all  presumption, 
Louyly  submittying  every  houre  and  space, 
My  rude  language  to  my  lorde's  grace. 

Anone  after  I  of  eutencion. 

With  penne  in  hande  fast  gan  me  spede, 

As  I  coulde  in  my  translation, 

In  this  labour  further  to  precede, 

My  Lorde  came  forth  by  and  gan  to  take  hede ; 

This  mighty  prince  right  manly  and  right  wise 

Gaue  me  charge  in  his  prudent  auyle. 

That  I  should  in  euery  tragedy. 

After  the  processe  made  mencion, 

At  the  ende  set  a  remedy. 

With  a  Lenuoy,  conveyed  by  reason ; 

And  after  that,  with  humble  affection. 

To  noble  princes  lowly  it  dyrect. 

By  others  fallying  them  selues  to  correct, 


BIBLIOMANIA.  281 

And  I  obeyed  his  biddyng  and  pleasaunce 

Under  support  of  his  magnificence, 

As  I  coulde,  I  gan  my  penne  aduaunce, 

All  be  I  was  barrayne  of  eloquence, 

Folowing  mine  auctor  in  substance  and  s^tence, 

For  it  sufficeth  playnly  unto  me, 

So  that  my  lorde  my  makyng  take  in  gre."* 

Lydgate  often  received  money  whilst  translating 
this  work,  from  the  good  duke  Humphrey,  and 
there  is  a  manuscript  letter  in  the  British  Museum 
in  which  he  writes — 

"  Righte  myghty  prynce,  and  it  be  youre  wille, 
Condescende  leyser  for  to  take. 
To  se  the  contents  of  thys  litel  bille, 
Whiche  whan  I  wrote  my  hand  felt  qquake."t 

Duke  Humphrey  gave  a  noble  instance  of  his  great 
love  of  learning  in  the  year  1439,  when  he  presented 
to  the  University  of  Oxford  one  hundred  and 
twenty-nine  treatises,  and  shortly  after,  one  hundred 
and  twenty-six  admirandi  apparatus ;  and  in  the 
same  year,  nine  more.  In  1443,  ^^  made  another 
important  donation  of  one  hundred  and  thirty 
volumes,  to  which  he  added  one  hundred  and 
thirty-five  more,  J  making  in  all,  a  collection  of  five 
hundred  and  thirty-eight  volumes.  These  treas- 
ures, too,  had  been  collected  with  all  the  nice 
acumen  of  a  bibliomaniac,  and  the  utmost  attention 
was  paid  to  their  outward  condition  and  internal 
purity.     Never,  perhaps,  were  so  many  costly  copies 

*  Tragedies  of  Ihon  Bochas.  Imp.  at  London,  by  John  Way- 
land,  fol.  38  b. 

f  MS.  Harleian,  No.  2251,  fol.  6.  Lydgate  received  one  hun- 
dred shillings  for  translating  the  Life  of  St.  Alban  into  English  verse 
for  Whethamstede. 

X  See  Wood's  Hist,  and  Antiq.  of  Oxford,  vol.  ii.  p.  914. 


282  BIBLIOMANIA. 

seen  before,  dazzling  with  the  splendor  of  their 
illuminations,  and  rendered  inestimable  by  the 
many  faithful  miniatures  with  which  they  were 
enriched.  A  superb  copy  of  Valerius  Maximus  is 
the  only  relic  of  that  costly  and  noble  gift,  a  solitary 
but  illustrious  example  of  the  membraneous  treas- 
ures of  that  ducal  library.*  But  alas !  those  very 
indications  of  art,  those  exquisite  illuminations, 
were  the  fatal  cause  of  their  unfortunate  end ;  the 
portraits  of  kings  and  eminent  men,  with  which  the 
historical  works  were  adorned  ;  the  diagrams  which 
pervaded  the  scientific  treatises,  were  viewed  by 
the  zealous  reformers  of  Henry's  reign,  as  damning 
evidence  of  their  Popish  origin  and  use ;  and  re- 
leased from  the  chains  with  which  they  were 
secured,  they  were  hastily  committed  to  the  greedy 
flames.  Thus  perished  the  library  of  Humphrey, 
duke  of  Gloucester !  and  posterity  have  to  mourn 
the  loss  of  many  an  early  gem  of  English  liter- 
ature.f 

But  in  the  fourteenth  century  many  other 
honorable  examples  occur  of  lay  collectors.  The 
magnificent  volumes,  nine  hundred  in  number,  col- 

*  MSS.  Bodl.  N.  E.  vii,  ii.  Warton,  vol.  ii.  p.  45.  I  find  in 
the  Arundel  Register  in  the  British  Museum  (MSS.  Arund.  clxiii,  c.) 
that  a  fine  copy  of  Valerius,  in  two  volumes,  with  a  gloss,  was  tran- 
scribed in  the  time  of  Whethamstede  at  St.  Albans,  at  the  cost  of 
Ifi  13  4,  probably  the  identical  copy. 

f  There  are  many  volumes  formerly  belonging  to  duke  Hum- 
phrey, in  the  public  libraries,  a  fine  volume  intitled  "  Tabulas 
Humfridi  ducis  Glowcester  in  Judicus  artis  Geomantie,"  is  in  the 
Brit.  Mus.,  MSS.  Arund.  66,  fo.  277,  beautifully  written  and  illu- 
minated with  excessive  margins  of  the  purest  vellum.  See  also 
MSS.  Harl.  1705.  Leland  says,  "Humfredus  multaties  scripsit  in 
frontispiecis  librorum  suorum,  Moun  Hen  Mondain,"  Script,  vol. 
iii.  58. 


BIBLIOMANIA.  283 

lected  by  Charles  V.  of  France,  a  passionate  biblio- 
maniac, were  afterwards  brought  by  the  duke  of 
Bedford  into  England.  The  library  then  contained 
eight  hundred  and  fifty-three  volumes,  so  sumpt- 
uously bound  and  gorgeously  illuminated  as  to  be 
valued  at  2,223  livres!*  This  choice  importation 
diffused  an  eager  spirit  of  inquiry  among  the  more 
wealthy  laymen.  Humphrey,  the  "good  duke," 
received  some  of  these  volumes  as  presents,  and 
among  others,  a  rich  copy  of  Livy,  in  French.f 
Guy  Beauchamp,  Earl  of  Warwick,  also  collected 
some  choice  tomes,  and  possessed  an  unusually 
interesting  library  of  early  romances.  He  left  the 
whole  of  them  to  the  monks  of  Bordesley  Abbey 
in  Worcestershire,  about  the  year  1359. J  As  a 
specimen  of  a  private  library  in  the  fourteenth 
century,  I  am  tempted  to  extract  it. 

"A  tus  iceux,  qe  ceste  lettre  verront,  ou  orrount, 
Gwy  de  Beauchamp,  Comte  de  Warn  Saluz  en 
Deu.  Saluz  nous  aveir  bayle  e  en  la  garde  le  Abbe 
e  le  Covent  de  Bordesleye,  lesse  a  demorer  a  touz 
jours  touz  les  Romaunces  de  sonz  nomes ;  ceo  est 
assaveyr,  un  volum,  qe  est  appele  Tresor.  Un 
volum,  en  le  quel  est  le  premer  livere  de  Lancelot, 
e  un  volum  del  Romaunce  de  Aygnes.  Un  Sauter 
de  Romaunce.  Un  volum  des  Evangelies,  e  de  Vie 
des  Seins.  Un  volum,  qe  p'le  des  quatre  principals 
Gestes  de  Charles,  e  de  dooun,  e  de  Meyace  e  de 

*  Bouvin,  Mem.  de  I'Acad.  des  Inscrip.,  ii.  693. 

t  Ibid. 

X  Printed  in  Todd's  Illustrations  to  Gower  and  Chaucer,  8vo. 
p.  l6i,  from  a  copy  by  Arch  Sancroft,  from  Ashmole's  Register  of 
the  Earl  of  Ailesbury's  Evidences,  fol.  no.  Lambeth,  MSS., 
No.  577.  fol.  18  b. 


284  BIBLIOMANIA. 

Girard  de  Vienne  e  de  Emery  de  Nerbonne.  Un 
volum  del  Romaunce  Emmond  de  Ageland,  e  deu 
Roy  Charles  dooun  de  Nauntoyle.  E  le  Romaunce 
de  Gwyoun  de  Nauntoyl.  E  un  volum  del  Ro- 
maunce Titus  et  Vespasien.  E  un  volum  del 
Romaunce  Josep  ab  Arimathie,  e  deu  Seint  Grael. 
E  un  volum,  qe  p'le  coment  Adam  fust  enieste  hors 
de  paradys,  e  le  Genesie.  E  un  volum  en  le  quel 
sount  contenuz  touns  des  Romaunces,  ceo  este 
assaveir,  Vitas  patrum  au  comencement ;  e  pus  un 
Comte  de  Auteypt ;  e  la  Vision  Seint  Pol ;  et  pus 
les  Vies  des  xii.  Seins.  E  le  Romaunce  de  Willame 
de  Loungespe.  E  Autorites  des  Seins  humes.  E 
le  Mirour  de  Alme.  Un  volum,  en  le  quel  sount 
contenuz  la  Vie  Seint  Pere  e  Seint  Pol,  e  des  autres 
liv.  E  un  volum  qe  est  appele  I'Apocalips.  E 
un  livere  de  Phisik,  e  de  Surgie.  Un  volum  del 
Romaunce  de  Gwy,  e  de  la  Reygne  tut  enterement. 
Un  volum  del  Romaunce  de  Troies.  Un  volum 
del  Romaunce  de  Willame  de  Orenges  e  de  Teband 
de  Arabie.  Un  volum  del  Romaunce  de  Amase 
e  de  Idoine.  Un  volum  del  Romaunce  de  Girard 
de  Viene.  Un  volum  del  Romaunce  deu  Brut,  e 
del  Roy  Costentine.  Un  volum  de  le  enseignemt 
Aristotle  enveiez  au  Roy  Alisaundre.  Un  volum 
de  la  mort  ly  Roy  Arthur,  e  de  Mordret.  Un 
volum  en  le  quel  sount  contenuz  les  Enfaunces  de 
Nostre  Seygneur,  coment  il  fust  mene  en  Egipt. 
E  la  Vie  Seint  Edwd.  E  la  Visioun  Seint  Pol. 
La  Vengeaunce  n're  Seygneur  par  Vespasien  a 
Titus,  e  la  Vie  Seint  Nicolas,  qe  fust  nez  en  Patras. 
E  la  Vie  Seint  Eustace.  E  la  Vie  Seint  Cudlac. 
E  la  Passioun  n're  Seygneur.     E  la  Meditacioun 


BIBLIOMANIA.  285 

Seint  Bernard  de  n're  Dame  Seint  Marie,  e  del 
Passioun  sour  deuz  fiz  Jesu  Creist  n're  Seignr. 
E  la  Vie  Seint  Eufrasie.  E  la  Vie  Seint  Rade- 
gounde.  E  la  Vie  Seint  Juliane.  Un  volum,  en 
le  quel  est  aprise  de  Enfants  et  lumifere  a  Lays. 
Un  volum  del  Romaunce  d'a  Alisaundre,  ove  pein- 
tures.  Un  petit  rouge  livere,  en  le  quel  sount 
contenuz  mons  diverses  choses.  Un  volum  del 
Romaunce  des  Mareschans,  e  de  Ferebras  e  de 
Alisaundre.  Les  queus  livres  nous  grauntons  par 
nos  heyrs  e  par  nos  assignes  qil  demorront  en  la 
dit  Abbeye,  etc." 


CHAPTER   XII. 

The  Dominicans. —  The  Franciscans  and  the  Carme- 
lites. — Scholastic  Studies.  —  Robert  Grostest.  — 
Libraries  in  London. — Miracle  Plays. — Intro- 
duction of  Printing  into  England. — Barkleys 
Description  of  a  Bibliomaniac. 


HE  old  monastic  orders  of  St. 
Augustine  and  St.  Benedict,  of 
whose  love  of  books  we  have 
principally  spoken  hitherto,  were 
kept  from  falling  into  sloth  and 
ignorance  in  the  thirteenth  cent- 
ury by  the  appearance  of  several 
new  orders  of  devotees.  The  Dominicans,*  the 
Franciscans,f  and  the  Carmelites  were  each  re- 
nowned for  their  profound  learning,  and  their 
unquenchable  passion  for  knowledge ;  assuming  a 
garb  of  the  most  abject  poverty,   renouncing  all 

*  Thirteen  Dominicans  were  sent  into  England  in  the  year  1221; 
they  held  their  first  provincial  council  in  England  in  1230  at  Oxford, 
three  years  before  St.  Dominic  was  canonized  by  pope  Gregory. 

t  Four  clercs  and  five  laymen  of  the  Franciscan  order  were  sent 
into  England  in  1224;  ten  years  afterwards  we  find  their  disciples 
spreading  over  the  whole  of  England. 


288  BIBLIOMANIA. 

love  of  the  world,  all  participation  in  its  temporal 
honors,  and  refraining  to  seek  the  aggrandizement 
of  their  order  by  fixed  oblations  or  state  endow- 
ments, but  adhering  to  a  voluntary  system  for  sup- 
port, they  caused  a  visible  sensation  among  all 
classes,  and  wrought  a  powerful  change  in  the 
ecclesiastical  and  collegiate  learning  of  the  four- 
teenth and  fifteenth  centuries ;  and  by  their  devo- 
tion, their  charity,  their  strict  austerity,  and  by 
their  brilliant  and  unconquerable  powers  of  dis- 
putation, soon  gained  the  respect  and  affections  of 
the  people.* 

Much  as  the  friars  have  been  condemned,  or 
darkly  as  they  have  been  represented,  I  have  no 
hesitation  in  saying  that  they  did  more  for  the 
revival  of  learning,  and  the  progress  of  English 
literature,  than  any  other  of  the  monastic  orders. 
We  cannot  trace  their  course  without  admiration 
and  astonishment  at  their  splendid  triumphs  and 
success  ;  they  appear  to  act  as  intellectual  crusaders 
against  the  prevailing  ignorance  and  sloth.  The 
finest  names  that  adorn  the  literary  annals  of  the 
fourteenth  and  fifteenth  centuries,  the  most  prolific 
authors  who  flourished  during  that  long  period 
were  begging  friars ;  and  the  very  spirit  that  was 
raised  against  them  by  the  churchmen,  and  the 
severe  controversal  battles  which  they  had  between 
them,  were  the  means  of  doing  a  vast  amount  of 

•  Edward  the  Second  regarded  them  with  great  favor,  and  wrote 
several  letters  to  the  pope  in  their  praise;  he  says  in  one,  "Deside- 
rantes  itaque,  pater  sancte  ordinis  fratrum  praedicatorum  Oxonii,  ubi 
religionis  devotio,  et  honestatis  laudabilis  decer  viget,  per  quern  etiam 
honor  universitatis  Oxoniensis,  et  utilitas  ibidem  studentium,  etc." 
Dugdale's  Monast.  vol.  vi.  p.  1492. 


BIBLIOMANIA.  289 

good,  of  exposing  ignorance  in  high  places,  and 
compelling  those  who  enjoyed  the  honors  of 
learning  to  strive  to  merit  them,  by  a  studious 
application  to  literature  and  science;  need  I  do 
more  than  mention  the  shining  names  of  Duns 
Scotus,  of  Thomas  Aquinas,  of  Roger  Bacon,  the 
founder  of  experimental  philosophy,  and  the  justly 
celebrated  Robert  Grostest,  the  most  enlightened 
ecclesiastic  of  his  age.* 

We  may  not  admire  the  scholastic  philosophy 
which  the  followers  of  Francis  and  Dominic  held 
and  expounded ;  we  may  deplore  the  intricate  mazes 
and  difficulties  which  a  false  philosophy  led  them  to 
maintain,  and  we  may  equally  deplore  the  waste  of 
time  and  learning  which  they  lavished  in  the  vain 
hope  of  solving  the  mysteries  of  God,  or  in  com- 
prehending a  loose  and  futile  science.  Yet  the 
philosophy  of  the  schoolmen  is  but  little  under- 
stood, and  is  too  often  condemned  without  reason 
or  without  proof ;  for  those  who  trouble  themselves 
to  denounce,  seldom  care  to  read  them  ;  their  pon- 
derous volumes  are  too  formidable  to  analyze ;  it  is 
so  much  easier  to  declaim  than  to  examine  such 
sturdy  antagonists ;  but  we  owe  to  the  schoolmen 
far  more  than  we  are  apt  to  suppose,  and  if  it  were 
possible  to  scratch  their  names  from  the  page  of 
history,  and  to  obliterate  all  traces  of  their  bulky 

*  A  list  of  celebrated  authors  who  flourished  in  England,  and 
who  were  members  of  the  Dominican  Order,  will  be  found  in  Steven's 
Monasticon,  vol.  ii.  p.  193,  more  than  80  names  are  mentioned. 
A  similar  list  of  authors  of  the  Franciscan  order  will  be  found  at  p,  97 
of  vol.  i.  containing  122  names;  and  of  the  Carmelite  authors,  vol.  ii. 
p.  160,  specifying  137  writers;  a  great  proportion  of  their  works  are 
upon  the  Scriptures. 


290  BIBLIOMANIA. 

writings  from  our  libraries  and  from  our  literature, 
we  should  find  our  knowledge  dark  and  gloomy  in 
comparison  with  what  it  is. 

But  the  mendicant  orders  did  not  study  and 
uphold  the  scholastic  philosophy  without  improving 
it ;  the  works  of  Aristotle,  of  which  it  is  said  the 
early  schoolmen  possessed  only  a  vitiated  trans- 
lation from  the  Arabic,*  was,  at  the  period  these 
friars  sprung  up,  but  imperfectly  understood  and 
taught.  Michael  Scot,  with  the  assistance  of  a 
learned  Jew,"!"  translated  and  published  the  writings 
of  the  great  philosopher  in  Latin,  which  greatly 
superseded  the  old  versions  derived  from  the 
Saracen  copies. 

The  mendicant  friars  having  qualified  them- 
selves with  a  respectable  share  of  Greek  learn- 
ing, then  taught  and  expounded  the  Aristotelian 
philosophy  according  to  this  new  translation,  and 
opened  a  new  and  proscribed  fieldj  for  disputation 
and  enquiry ;  their  indomitable  perseverance,  their 
acute  powers  of  reasoning,  and  the  splendid  pop- 
ularity which  many  of  the  disciples  of  St.  Dominic 

*  Dr.  Cave  says,  "In  scholis  Christianis  pene  unice  regnavit 
scholastica  theologia,  advocata  in  subsidium  Aristotelis  philosophia, 
eaque  non  ex  Graecis  fontibus  sed  ex  turbidis  Arabum  lacunis,  ex 
versionibus  male/aciis,  male  intellectis,  hansta.  Hist.  Liter y  p.  615. 
But  I  am  not  satisfied  that  this  has  been  proved,  though  often 
affirmed. 

t  It  was  probably  the  work  of  Andrew  the  Jew.  Meiners,  ii. 
p.  664. 

t  At  a  council  held  at  Paris  in  the  year  1209,  the  works  of  Aris- 
totle were  proscribed  and  ordered  to  be  burnt.  Launvius  de  Varia 
Aristotelis  fortuna.  But  in  spite  of  the  papal  mandate  the  friars 
revived  its  use.  Richard  Fizacre,  an  intimate  friend  of  Roger  Bacon, 
was  so  passionately  fond  of  reading  Aristotle,  that  he  always  carried 
one  of  his  works  in  his  bosom.     Stevens  Monast.^  vol.  ii.  p.  194. 


BIBLIOMANIA.  291 

and  St.  Francis  were  fast  acquiring,  caused  students 
to  flock  in  crowds  to  their  seats  of  learning,  and  all 
who  were  inspired  to  an  acquaintance  with  scholastic 
philosophy  placed  themselves  under  their  training 
and  tuition.* 

No  religious  order  before  them  ever  carried  the 
spirit  of  inquiry  to  such  an  extent  as  they,  or 
allowed  it  to  wander  over  such  an  unbounded 
field.  The  most  difficult  and  mysterious  ques- 
tions of  theology  were  discussed  and  fearlessly 
analyzed ;  far  from  exercising  that  blind  and  easy 
credulity  which  mark  the  religious  conduct  of  the 
old  monastic  orders,  they  were  disposed  to  probe 
and  examine  every  article  of  their  faith.  To  such 
an  extent  were  their  disputations  carried,  that 
sometimes  it  shook  their  faith  in  the  orthodoxy  of 
Rome,  and  often  aroused  the  pious  fears  of  the 
more  timid  of  their  own  order.  Angell  de  Pisa, 
who  founded  the  school  of  the  Franciscans  or  Grey 
Friars  at  Oxford,  is  said  to  have  gone  one  day 
into  his  school,  with  a  view  to  discover  what 
progress  the  students  were  making  in  their  studies; 
as  he  entered  he  found  them  warm  in  disputation, 
and  was  shocked  to  find  that  the  question  at  issue 
was  ''whether  there  was  a  God;"  the  good  man, 
greatly  alarmed,  cried  out,  "  Alas,  for  me !  alas,  for 
me !  simple  brothers  pierce  the  heavens  and  the 
learned  dispute  whether  there  be  a  God  !"  and  with 
great  indignation  ran  out  of  the  house  blaming 
himself  for  having  established  a  school  for  such 
fearful  disputes ;  but  he  afterwards  returned  and 
remained  among  his  pupils,  and  purchased  for  ten 
*  See  what  has  been  said  of  the  Mendicants  at  p.  79. 


292  BIBLIOMANIA. 

marks  a  corrected  copy  of  the  decretals,  to  which 
he  made  his  students  apply  their  minds.*  This 
school  was  the  most  flourishing  of  those  belonging 
to  the  Franciscans ;  and  it  was  here  that  the 
celebrated  Robert  Grostestf,  bishop  of  Lincoln, 
read  lectures  about  the  year  1230.  He  was  a 
profound  scholar,  thoroughly  conversant  with  the 
most  abstruse  matters  of  philosophy,  and  a  great 
Bible  reader. I  He  possessed  an  extensive  know- 
ledge of  the  Greek,  and  translated,  into  Latin, 
Dionysius  the  Areopagite,  Damascenus,  Suida's 
Greek  Lexicon,  a  Greek  Grammar,  and,  with  the 
assistance  of  Nicholas,  a  monk  of  St.  Alban's,  the 
History  of  the  Twelve  Patriarchs.  He  collected 
a  fine  library  of  Greek  books,  many  of  which  he 
obtained  from  Athens.  Roger  Bacon  speaks  of 
his  knowledge  of  the  Greek,  and  says,  that  he 
caused  a  vast  number  of  books  to  be  gathered 
together  in  that  tongue.§  His  extraordinary  talent 
and  varied  knowledge  caused  him  to  be  deemed 
a  conjuror  and  astrologer  by  the  ignorant  and 
superstitious ;  and  his  enemies,  who  were  numerous 
and  powerful,  did  not  refuse  to  encourage  the  slan- 
derous report.  We  find  him  so  represented  by 
the  poet  Gower: — 


*  Steven's  additions  to  Dugdale's  Monasticon  from  the  MSS.  of 
Anthony  a  Wood  in  the  library  at  Oxford,  vol.  i.  p.  129.  Agnell 
himself  was  "a  man  of  scarce  any  erudition." — Ibid. 

t  He  is  spoken  of  under  a  multitude  of  names,  sometimes 
Grosthead,  Grouthead,  etc.  A  list  of  them  will  be  found  in  Wood's 
Oxford  by  Gutch,  vol.  i.  p.  198. 

X  He  gives  strict  injunctions  as  to  the  study  of  the  Scriptures  in 
his  Constitutiones. — See  Pegge's  Life  of  Grostest,  p.  315. 

%  Utilitate  Scientiarum,  cap.  xxxix. 


BIBLIOMANIA.  293 

**  Jot  ot  tbc  fltctc  clerft  ©tostest, 
f  teOc  bow  re5B  tbat  be  was 
mpon  derate,  anD  be5e  of  bras, 
Zq  mahc  anJ>  forge  ft,  for  to  telle 
©f  sucbe  tbignges  as  befelle, 
BnJ)  seven  seres  besfnesse. 
i!?e  laD^e,  but  for  tbe  lacltbesse 
®f  'a  balfe  a  mgnute  of  an  boure, 
Jro  fisrst  tbat  be  began  laboure, 
Ke  lost  al  tbat  be  ba£)  bo."* 

The  Franciscan  convent  at  Oxford  contained 
two  libraries,  one  for  the  use  of  the  graduates  and 
one  for  the  secular  students,  who  did  not  belong  to 
their  order,  but  who  were  receiving  instruction 
from  them.  Grostest  gave  many  volumes  to  these 
libraries,  and  at  his  death  he  beqlieathed  to  the 
convent  all  his  books,  which  formed  no  doubt  a 
fine  collection.  "  To  these  were  added,"  says 
Wood,  "  the  works  of  Roger  Bacon,  who,  Bale  tells 
us,  writ  an  hundred  Treatises.  There  were  also 
volumes  of  other  writers  of  the  same  order,  which, 
I  believe,  amounted  to  no  small  number.  In  short, 
I  guess  that  these  libraries  were  filled  with  all  sorts 
of  erudition,  because  the  friars  of  all  orders,  and 
chiefly  the  Franciscans,  used  so  diligently  to  procure 
all  monuments  of  literature  from  all  parts,  that 
wise  men  looked  upon  it  as  an  injury  to  laymen, 
who,  therefore,  found  a  difficulty  to  get  any  books. 
Several  books  of  Grostest  and  Bacon  treated  of 
astronomy  and  mathematics,  besides  some  relating 

*  De  Confess.  Amantis,  lib.  iv.  fo.  70,  Imprint.  Caxton  at  West- 
minster, 1483.  The  bishop  is  said  to  have  taken  a  journey  from 
England  to  Rome  one  night  on  an  infernal  horse. — Pegge's  Life  of 
Grostest,  p.  306. 


294  BIBLIOMANIA. 

to  the  Greek  tongue.  But  these  friars,  as  I  have 
found  by  certain  ancient  manuscripts,  bought  many 
Hebrew  books  of  the  Jews  who  were  disturbed  in 
England.  In  a  word,  they,  to  their  utmost  power, 
purchased  whatsoever  was  anywhere  to  be  had  of 
singular  learning."* 

Many  of  the  smaller  convents  of  the  Franciscan 
order  possessed  considerable  libraries,  which  they 
purchased  or  received  as  gifts  from  their  patrons. f 
There  was  a  house  of  Grey  Friars  at  Exeter,  J  and 
Roger  de  Thoris,  Archdeacon  of  Exeter,  gave  or 
lent  them  a  library  of  books  in  the  year  1 266,  soon 
after  their  establishment,  reserving  to  himself  the 
privilege  of  using  them,  and  forbade  the  friars  from 
selling  or  parting  with  them.  The  collection,  how- 
ever, contained  less  than  twenty  volumes,  and  was 
formed  principally  of  the  scriptures  and  writings  of 
their  own  order.  "  Whosoever,"  concludes  the 
document,  "  shall  presume  hereafter  to  separate  or 
destroy  this  donation  of  mine,  may  he  incur  the 
malediction  of  the  omnipotent  God !  dated  on  the 
day  of  the  purification,  in  the  year  of  our  Lord 

MCCLXVI."§ 

The  library  of  the  Grey  Friars  in  London  was 
of  more  than  usual  magnificence  and  extent.  It  was 
founded  by  the  celebrated  Richard  Whittington. 

*  Stephen's  additions  to  Dugdale's  Monasticon  from  Anthony  a 
Wood's  MSS.  vol.  i.  p.  133. 

t  The  Mendicant  orders,  unlike  the  monks,  were  not  remarkable 
for  their  industry  in  transcribing  books :  their  roving  life  was  unsuit- 
able to  the  tedious  profession  of  a  scribe. 

X  Leland's  Itin.  vol.  iii.  p.  59. 

%  Oliver's  Collections  relating  to  the  Monasteries  in  Devon,  8vo. 
1820,  appendix  Ixii. 


BIBLIOMANIA.  295 

Its  origin  is  thus  set  forth  in  an  old  manuscript  in 
the  Cottonian  library  :* 

"In  the  year  of  our  Lord,  1421,  the  worshipful 
Richard  Whyttyngton,  knight  and  mayor  of  Lon- 
don, began  the  new  library  and  laid  the  first  foun- 
dation-stone on  the  2ist  day  of  October;  that  is, 
on  the  feast  of  St.  Hilarion  the  abbot.  And  the 
following  year  before  the  feast  of  the  nativity  of 
Christ,  the  house  was  raised  and  covered ;  and 
in  three  years  after,  it  was  floored,  whitewashed, 
glazed,t  adorned  with  shelves,  statues,  and  carving, 
and  furnished  with  books  :  and  the  expenses  about 
what  is  aforesaid  amount  to  ;^556  :  16  :  9  ;  of  which 
sum,  the  aforesaid  Richard  Whyttyngton  paid 
/"400,  and  the  residue  was  paid  by  the  reverend 
father  B.  Thomas  Winchelsey  and  his  friends,  to 
whose  soul  God  be  propitious. — Amen." 

Among  some  items  of  money  expended,  we 
find,  "  for  the  works  of  Doctor  de  Lyra  contained 
in  two  volumes,  now  in  the  chains,  J  100  marks,  of 
which  B.  John  Frensile  remitted  20s. ;  and  for  the 
Lectures  of  Hostiensis,  now  lying  in  the  chains, 
5  marks."§  Leland  speaks  in  the  most  enthusiastic 
terms  of  this  library,  and  says,  that  it  far  surpassed 
all  others  for  the  number  and  antiquity  of  its  vol- 
umes.    John  Wallden  bequeathed  as  many  manu- 

•  Cottonian  MSS.  Vittel,  F.  xii.  13.  fol.  325,  headed  ^^  De  Fun- 
dacione  LibraiHe." 

t  The  library  was  129  feet  long  and  31  feet  broad,  and  most 
beautifully  fitted  up. — Lelandi  Antiquarii  Collectanea,  vol.  i.  p.  109. 

X  This  refers  to  the  custom  then  prevalent  of  chaining  their 
books,  especially  their  choice  ones,  to  the  library  shelf,  or  to  a 
reading  desk. 

$  MS.  ibid.  fo.  o.  325  b. 


296  BIBLIOMANIA. 

scripts  of  celebrated  authors  as  were  worth  two 
thousand  pounds.* 

The  library  of  the  Dominicans  in  London  was 
also  at  one  time  well  stored  with  valuable  books. 
Leland  mentions  some  of  those  he  found  there,  and 
among  them  some  writings  of  Wicliff;f  indeed 
those  of  this  order  were  renowned  far  and  wide  for 
their  love  of  study ;  look  at  the  old  portraits  of  a 
Dominican  friar,  and  you  will  generally  see  him 
with  the  pen  in  one  hand  and  a  book  in  the  other ; 
but  they  were  more  ambitious  in  literature  than 
the  monks,  and  aimed  at  the  honors  of  an  author 
rather  than  at  those  of  a  scribe ;  but  we  are  sur- 
prised more  at  their  fertility  than  at  their  style  or 
originality  in  the  mysteries  of  bookcraft.  Henry 
Esseburn  diligently  read  at  Oxford,  and  devoted  his 
whole  soul  to  study,  and  wrote  a  number  of  works, 
principally  on  the  Bible ;  he  was  appointed  to 
govern  the  Dominican  monastery  at  Chester ; 
"being  remote  from  all  schools,  he  made  use  of 
his  spare  hours  to  revise  and  polish  what  he  had 
writ  at  Oxford ;  having  performed  the  same  to  his 
own  satisfaction,  he  caused  his  works  to  be  fairly 
transcribed,  and  copies  of  them  to  be  preserved  in 
several  libraries  of  his  order.  J  But  they  did  not 
usually  pay  so  much  attention  to  the  duties  of 
transcribing.  The  Dominicans  were  fond  of  the 
physical  sciences,  and  have  been  accused  of  too 
much  partiality  for  occult  philosophy.    Leland  tells 

•  Script.  Brit.  p.  241,  and  Collectanea,  iii.  52. 

t  Leland's  Collect,  vol.  iii.  p.  51.  He  found  in  the  priory  of 
the  IDominicans  at  Cambridge,  among  other  books,  a  Biblia  in 
lingua  vemacula. 

X  Steven's  Monast.  vol.  ii.  p.  194. 


BIBLIOMANIA.  297 

us  that  Robert  Perserutatur,  a  Dominican,  was  over 
solicitous  in  prying  into  the  secrets  of  philosophy,* 
and  lays  the  same  charge  to  many  others. 

The  Carmelites  were  more  careful  in  tran- 
scribing books  than  the  Dominicans,  and  anxiously 
preserved  them  from  dust  and  worms ;  but  I  can 
find  but  little  notice  of  their  libraries ;  the  one  at 
Oxford  was  a  large  room,  where  they  arranged 
their  books  in  cases  made  for  that  purpose ;  before 
the  foundation  of  this  library,  the  Carmelites  kept 
their  books  in  chests,  and  doubtless  gloried  in  an 
ample  store  of  manuscript  treasures.f 

But  in  the  fifteenth  century  we  find  the  Men- 
dicant Friars,  like  the  order  religious  sects,  dis- 
regarding those  strict  principles  of  piety  which  had 
for  two  hundred  years  so  distinguished  their  order. 
The  holy  rules  of  St.  Francis  and  St.  Dominic 
were  seldom  read  with  much  attention,  and  never 
practised  with  severity ;  they  became  careless  in 
the  propagation  of  religious  principles,  relaxed  in 
their  austerity,  and  looked  with  too  much  fondness 
on  the  riches  and  honors  of  the  world. J  This 
diminution  in  religious  zeal  was  naturally  accom- 
panied by  a  proportionate  decrease  in  learning  and 

*  His  works  were  of  the  impressions  of  the  Air — of  the  Wonder 
of  the  Elements^-of  Ceremonial  Magic — of  the  Mysteries  of  Secrets 
— and  the  Correction  of  Chemistry. 

t  Sieben's  Monast.  vol.  i.  p.  183,  from  the  MSS.  of  Anthony  a 
Wood,  who  says,  **  What  became  of  them  (their  books)  at  the  dis- 
solution unless  they  were  carried  into  the  library  of  some  college,  I 
know  not." 

\  They  obtained  much  wealth  by  the  sale  of  pardons  and  indul- 
gences. Margaret  Est,  of  the  convent  of  Franciscans,  ordered  her 
letters  of  pardon  and  absolution,  to  partake  of  the  indulgences  of  the 
convent,  to  be  returned  as  soon  she  was  buried.  Bloomfield^s  Hist, 
of  Norfolk,  vol.  ii.  p.  565. 


298  BIBLIOMANIA. 

love  of  study.  The  sparkling  orator,  the  acute 
controversialist,  or  the  profound  scholar,  might 
have  been  searched  for  in  vain  among  the  Francis- 
cans or  the  Dominicans  of  the  fifteenth  century. 
Careless  in  literary  matters,  they  thought  little  of 
collecting  books,  or  preserving  even  those  which 
their  libraries  already  contained  ;  the  Franciscans 
at  Oxford  "  sold  many  of  their  books  to  Dr.  Thomas 
Gascoigne,  about  the  year  1433,*  which  he  gave  to 
the  libraries  of  Lincoln,  Durham,  Baliol,  and  Oriel. 
They  also  declining  in  strictness  of  life  and  learning, 
sold  many  more  to  other  persons,  so  that  their 
libraries  declined  to  little  or  nothing. "f 

We  are  not  therefore  surprised  at  the  disap- 
pointment of  Leland,  on  examining  this  famous 
repository;  his  expectations  were  raised  by  the 
care  with  which  he  found  the  library  guarded,  and 
the  difficulty  he  had  to  obtain  access  to  it :  but  when 
he  entered,  he  did  not  find  one-third  the  number  of 
books  which  it  originally  contained ;  but  dust  and 
cobwebs,  moths  and  beetles  he  found  in  abundance, 
which  swarmed  over  the  empty  shelves.  J 

The  mendicant  friars  have  rendered  themselves 
famous  by  introducing  theatrical  representations§ 
for  the  amusement  and  instruction  of  the  people. 
These  shows  were  usually  denominated  miracles, 

*  And  among  others  of  St.  Augustine's  books,  De  Civitate  Dei, 
with  many  notes  in  the  margins,  by  Grostest.  Wood's  Hist.  Oxon, 
p.  78. 

t  Anthony  a  Wood  in  Steven's  Monast.  vol.  i.  p.  133. 

X  Script.  Brit.  p.  286. 

%  Le  Boeuf  gfives  an  instance  of  one  being  represented  as  early 
as  the  eleventh  century,  in  which  Virgil  was  introduced.  Hallani's 
Lit.  0/  Europe,  vol.  i.  p.  295.  The  case  of  Geoflfry  of  St.  Albans  is 
well  known,  and  I  have  already  mentioned  it. 


BIBLIOMANIA.  299 

moralities,  or  mysteries,  and  were  performed  by 
the  friars  in  their  convents  or  on  portable  stages, 
which  were  wheeled  into  the  market  places  and 
streets  for  the  convenience  of  the  spectators. 

The  friars  of  the  monastery  of  the  Franciscans 
at  Coventry  are  particularly  celebrated  for  their  in- 
genuity in  performing  these  pageants  on  Corpus 
Christi  day ;  a  copy  of  this  play  or  miracle  is  pre- 
served in  the  Cottonian  Collection,  written  in  old 
English  rhyme.  It  embraces  the  transactions  of 
the  Old  and  New  Testament,  and  is  entitled  Ludus 
Corpus  Christi.     It  commences — 

B  PXBf  £  CHXX;62)  C©-RpmS  CDIRf  S^f .» 

"How  fitaci2OU0  (5o&  flroun&BJ)  of  all  gooOnesec, 

Bs  tbg  fitete  fllorte  neu^r  bcgisnnBng  baJ) ; 
So  120U  0UCCOUC  anD  save  all  tbose  tbat  g^gtt  an&  ^zzz^ 

Bn&  Isstengtb  to  our  talftgns  wltb  salens  etglle  anb  sab, 
yor  wc  purpose  no  pertlg  st^llc  in  bis  prcse 

Z\sz  pepBl  to  plesc  witb  ple^s  ful  fllab, 
flow  Igsteni^tb  us  lowlg  botb  mar  anb  lesse 

©entBllBs  anb  semaurs  oft  gooblg  l^ff  lab, 
l^is  tgbe, 
TKne  call  sou  sbewe  us  tbat  we  fian, 

Dow  tbat  Bis  werb  f^rst  began, 
Bnb  bowe  (5ob  mabe  botbe  worlbe  anb  man 

If  Bt  Be  WBll  abBbe. 

These  miracles  were  intended  to  instruct  the 
more  ignorant,  or  those  whose  circumstances  placed 
the  usual  means  of  acquiring  knowledge  beyond 

*  MS.  Cottonian  Vespasian,  D.  viii.  fo.  i.  Codex  Chart.  225 
folios,  written  in  the  fifteenth  century.  Sir  W.  Dugdale,  in  his  Hist, 
of  Warwick,  p.  116,  mentions  this  volume;  and  Stevens,  in  his  Mon- 
ast.  has  printed  a  portion  of  it.  Mr.  Halliwell  has  printed  them 
with  much  care  and  accuracy.  * 


300  BIBLIOMANIA. 

their  reach ;  but  as  books  became  accessible,  they 
were  no  longer  needed;  the  printing  press  made 
the  Bible,  from  which  the  plots  of  the  miracle  plays 
were  usually  derived,  common  among  the  people, 
and  these  gaudy  representations  were  swept  away 
by  the  Reformation;  but  they  were  temporarily 
revived  in  Queen  Mary's  time,  with  the  other 
abominations  of  the  church  papal,  for  we  find  that 
"in  the  year  1556  a  goodly  stage  play  of  the 
Passion  of  Christ  was  presented  at  the  Grey  Friers 
in  London  on  Corpus  Christi  day,"  before  the  Lord 
Mayor  and  citizens  ;*  but  we  have  nothing  here  to 
do  with  anecdotes  illustrating  a  period  so  late  as 
this. 

We  have  now  arrived  at  the  dawn  of  a  new  era 
in  learning,  and  the  slow,  plodding,  laborious 
scribes  of  the  monasteries  were  startled  by  the  ap- 
pearance of  an  invention  with  which  their  poor 
pens  had  no  power  to  compete.  The  year  1472 
was  the  last  of  the  parchment  literature  of  the 
monks,  and  the  first  in  the  English  annals  of 
printed  learning ;  but  we  must  not  forget  that  the 
monks  with  all  their  sloth  and  ignorance,  were  the 
foremost  among  the  encouragers  of  the  early  print- 
ing press  in  England ;  the  monotony  of  the  dull 
cloisters  of  Westminster  Abbey  was  broken  by  the 
clanking  of  Caxton's  press  ;  and  the  prayers  of  the 
monks  of  old  St.  Albans  mingled  with  the  echoes 
of  the  pressman's  labor.  Little  did  those  bare- 
footed priests  know  what  an  opponent  to  their 
Romish  rites  they  were  fostering  into  life ;  their 

•  MS.  Cottonian  Vitel.  E.  5.  Warton's  Hist.  Eng.  Poetry ^  vol. 
iii.  p.  326. 


BIBLIOMANIA.  301 

love  of  learning  and  passion  for  books,  drove  all 
fear  away ;  and  the  splendor  of  the  new  power  so 
dazzled  their  eyes  that  they  could  not  clearly  see 
the  nature  of  the  refulgent  light  just  bursting 
through  the  gloom  of  ages. 

After  the  invention  of  the  printing  art,  biblio- 
mania took  some  mighty  strides ;  and  many  choice 
collectors,  full  of  ardor  in  the  pursuit,  became  re- 
nowned for  the  vast  book  stores  they  amassed  to- 
gether. But  some  of  their  names  have  been  pre- 
served and  good  deeds  chronicled  by  Dibdin,  of 
bibliographical  renown ;  so  that  a  chapter  is  not 
necessary  here  to  extol  them.  We  may  judge  how 
fashionable  the  avocation  became  by  the  keen  satire 
of  Alexander  Barkley,  in  his  translation  of  Brandt's 
Navis  Stultifera  or  Shyp  of  Folys,*  who  gives  a 
curious  illustration  of  a  bibliomaniac ;  and  thus 
speaks  of  those  collectors  who  amassed  their  book 
treasures  without  possessing  much  esteem  for  their 
contents. 

*^  Z\stX  in  tbta  ebip  tbc  cbiefe  place  f  gouernct 
JSb  tbis  wiDc  0ca  wftb  fooles  wanDring, 
Z\iz  cause  is  plain  &,  easB  to  Discerne 
Still  am  f  busi2,  booftes  assembling, 
3for  to  bave  plentie  it  is  a  pleasaunt  tbing 
In  ms  conceijt,  to  bave  tbem  as  in  banO, 
JSut  wbat  tbei3  meane  Do  f  not  unOerstanDe. 

**  JBut  set  f  bave  tbem  in  great  reverence 
BnD  bonoure,  sauing  tbem  from  llltb  &  ordure 
JB^  often  brusbing  &,  mucb  diligence 
^ull  gooDli^  bounce  in  pleasaunt  couerture 
©f  DamaSt  Sattin,  or  els  of  velvet  pure 

•  The  original  was  written  in  1494. 


302  BIBLIOMANIA. 

f  ftecpc  tbem  sure,  fearing  least  tbeig  sbouI&  be  lost, 
3For  tn  tbem  Is  tbe  cunnitifi  wberein  "ff  me  boast. 

**aBut  It  ft  fortune  tbat  anis  learneD  man 
TKflftbin  ms  bouse  fall  to  Disputation, 
1  brawe  tbe  curtai^nes  to  sbewe  m^  boftes  tbem, 
XTbat  tbes  of  ms  cunning  sboulb  mafte  probation 
1  love  not  to  fall  In  alterlcatlon, 
Bnb  wblle  tbe  commen,  mg  boftes  fl  turne  anb  wlnbe 
Jor  all  Is  in  tbem,  anb  notblng  in  mg  minbe, 

**ptolomeus  tbe  rlcbe  causeb,  longc  agone, 
©per  all  tbe  worlbe  goob  boolies  to  be  sougbt. 
Done  was  bis  commanbement— anone 
XTbese  boftes  be  bab,  anb  in  bis  stubie  brougbt, 
TRUblcb  passeb  all  eartblT5  treasure  as  be  tbougbt, 
JSut  nevertbelesse  be  bib  blm  not  appl^ 
■Qlnto  tbelr  boctrine,  but  llveb  unbappll)?. 

**Xo,  in  liftewise  of  booftes  f  bave  store, 
J3ut  fewe  1  reabe  anb  fewer  unberstanbe, 
f  folowe  not  tbelr  boctrine  nor  tbelr  lore. 
It  is  T^nougb  to  beare  a  boofte  in  banbe. 
It  were  too  mucbe  to  be  In  sucb  a  banbe, 
yor  to  be  bounbe  to  lofte  wltbln  tbe  boohe 
1  am  content  on  tbe  fagre  covergng  to  loofte. 

**lQlbB  sboulb  f  stubie  to  burt  mg  wit  tberbs, 
®r  trouble  ms  mlnbe  witb  stubie  eicesslue. 
Sitbe  mams  are  wblcb  stubie  rlgbt  busel^, 
anb  get  tberbg  tball  tbes  never  tbrlve 
^be  fruite  of  wisbome  can  tbes  not  contriue, 
Bnb  mans  to  stubie  so  mucbe  are  Incllnbe, 
tTbat  utterly  tbes  fall  out  of  tbelr  mlnbe. 

"JEcbe  is  not  lettreb  tbat  nowe  is  mabe  a  lorbe, 
•ftor  ecbe  a  clerfte  tbat  batb  a  benefice ; 
XTbeg  are  not  all  lawyers  tbat  pleas  bo  recorbe, 
Bll  tbat  are  promoteb  are  not  fullis  wise; 
©n  sucbe  cbauncc  nowe  fortune  tbrowes  ber  bice 
c;bat  tbougb  we  linowe  but  tbe  srlsbe  game, 
]|}et  wouib  be  bave  a  gentleman's  name. 


BIBLIOMANIA.  303 

**So  in  Ufie  wise  f  am  in  sucbe  caee, 
^bouab  f  nougbt  cant  f  would  be  called  wise, 
Bl60  f  mas  set  anotber  in  vk^  place, 
IKDlbicbe  mas  tor  me  ms  bolted  exercise, 
®r  eld  f  dball  ensue  tbe  common  duise, 
anb  sag  concebo  to  euers  argument, 
Xeast  bs  mucb  speacbe  ms  latin  sboulb  be  spent. 

^f  am  lilie  otber  Clerftes,  wbicb  so  frowarbls  tbem  0Sbe, 
^bat  after  tbes  are  once  come  unto  promotion, 
Tlbes  flive  tbem  to  pleasure,  tbeir  stubs  set  asibe, 
G^beir  auarice  couering  witb  f aineb  beuotion ; 
Iffet  basis  tbes  preacbe  anb  bave  great  berision 
against  tbe  rube  lasmen,  anb  all  tor  couetise, 
^brougb  tbeir  ow ne  conscience  be  blenbeb  witb  tbat  vice, 

**J5ut  it  f  burst  trutb  plainels  utter  anb  eipresse, 
XTbis  is  tbe  speciall  cause  ot  tbis  inconvenience, 
XTbat  greatest  ot  tooles  &  tullest  ot  lewdness, 
f)aving  least  wit  anb  simplest  science, 
are  first  promoted,  &,  bave  greatest  reverence ; 
^or  if  one  can  flatter  &,  bear  a  baufte  on  bis  fist, 
De  sball  be  mabe  parson  ot  f)onington  or  ot  JElist. 

**JBut  be  tbat  is  in  studs  as  fitme  and  diligent, 
and  witbout  all  favour  preacbetb  Cbriste's  love, 
Of  all  tbe  Cominalite  nowe  abases  is  sore  sbent, 
anb  bs  estates  tbreatned  oft  tberfore. 
Gbus  wbat  anasle  is  it  to  us  to  studs  more, 
%Q  ftnowe  etber  Scripture,  trutb,  wisbome,  or  virtue, 
Since  fewe  or  none  witbout  fauour  dare  tbem  sbewe. 

**J8ut  ®  noble  Doctours,  tbat  wortbs  are  of  name, 
Consiber  oure  olde  fatbers,  note  well  tbeir  diligence, 
Bnsue  sc  to  tbeir  steppes,  obtasne  se  sucbe  tame 
as  tbes  bib  living ;  anb  tbat,  bs  true  prubence 
IQlitbin  tbeir  beartes,  tbs  planteb  tbeir  science, 
anb  not  in  pleasaunt  booties,  but  none  to  fewe  sucbe  be, 
llberefore  to  tbis  sbip  come  sou  &.  rowe  witb  me. 


304  BIBLIOMANIA, 

**Waz  Xennos  of  aicianOec  3Barclai5, 
^ranalatour,  eibortfng  tbe  tooles  acclOBeO 
witb  tbis  vice,  to  amcnDc  tbeir  tolB» 

**  Sai2  wortble  Doctours  8i  Clerftcs  curious, 
TKlbat  monetb  sou  of  boohea  to  bavc  sucb  number. 
Since  biuers  Ooctrines  tbrougb  wai2  contrarious, 
H)otb  man's  minJ>e  Distract  anO  sore  encomber. 
Bias  blinbe  men  awafte,  out  of  sour  slumber ; 
Bnt>  if  Be  will  nee&es  sour  booftes  multipli^e, 
TKIlitb  diligence  enDeuor  sou  some  to  •ccupse.* 

•  Ship  of  Fooles,  folio  1570,  Impiynted  by  Cawood,  fol.  i. 


CHAPTER  XIII. 
Conclusion. 

E  have  traversed  through  the  dark- 
ness of  many  long  and  dreary 
centuries,  and  with  the  aid  of  a 
few  old  manuscripts  written  by  the 
monks  in  the  scriptoria  of  their 
monasteries,  caught  an  occasional 
glimpse  of  their  literary  labors  and 
love  of  books ;  these  parchment  volumes  being  mere 
monastic  registers,  or  terse  historic  compilations, 
do  not  record  with  particular  care  the  anecdotes 
applicable  to  my  subject,  but  appear  to  be  men- 
tioned almost  accidentally,  and  certainly  without 
any  ostentatious  design  ;  but  such  as  they  are  we 
learn  from  them  at  least  one  thing,  which  some  of 
us  might  not  have  known  before — that  the  monks 
of  old,  besides  telling  their  beads,  singing  psalms, 
and  muttering  their  breviary,  had  yet  one  other 
duty  to  perform — the  transcription  of  books.  And 
I  think  there  is  sufficient  evidence  that  they  fulfilled 
this  obligation  with  as  much  zeal  as  those  of  a 
more  strictly  monastic  or  religious  nature.     It  is 


3o6  BIBLIOMANIA. 

true,  in  casting  our  eye  over  the  history  of  their 
labors,  many  regrets  will  arise  that  they  did  not 
manifest  a  little  more  taste  and  refinement  in  their 
choice  of  books  for  transcribing.  The  classical 
scholar  will  wish  the  holy  monks  had  thought  more 
about  his  darling  authors  of  Greece  and  Rome ; 
but  the  pious  puritan  historian  blames  them  for 
patronizing  the  romantic  allurements  of  Ovid,  or 
the  loose  satires  of  Juvenal,  and  throws  out  some 
slanderous  hint  that  they  must  have  found  a  sym- 
pathy in  those  pages  of  licentiousness,  or  why  so 
anxious  to  preserve  them  ?  The  protestant  is  still 
more  scandalized,  and  denounces  the  monks,  their 
books,  scriptorium  and  all  together  as  part  and  parcel 
of  popish  craft  and  Romish  superstition.  But  surely 
the  crimes  of  popedom  and  the  evils  of  monachism, 
that  thing  of  dry  bones  and  fabricated  relics,  are 
bad  enough  ;  and  the  protestant  cause  is  sufficiently 
holy,  that  we  may  afford  to  be  honest  if  we  cannot 
to  be  generous.  What  good  purpose  then  will  it 
serve  to  cavil  at  the  monks  forever  ?  All  readers 
of  history  know  how  corrupt  they  became  in  the 
fifteenth  century ;  how  many  evils  were  wrought 
by  the  craft  of  some  of  them,  and  how  pernicious 
the  system  ultimately  waxed.  We  can  all,  I  say, 
reflect  upon  these  things,  and  guard  against  them  in 
future ;  but  it  is  not  just  to  apply  the  same  indis- 
criminate censure  to  all  ages.  Many  of  the  purest 
Christians  of  the  church,  the  brightest  ornaments 
of  Christ's  simple  flock,  were  barefooted  cowled 
monks  of  the  cloister ;  devout  perhaps  to  a  fault, 
with  simplicity  verging  on  superstition ;  yet  never- 
theless faithful,  pious  men,  and  holy.     Look  at  all 


BIBLIOMANIA.  307 

this  with  an  eye  of  charity ;  avoid  their  errors  and 
manifold  faults :  but  to  forget  the  loathsome  thing 
our  minds  have  conjured  up  as  the  type  of  an 
ancient  monk.  Remember  they  had  a  few  books 
to  read,  and  venerated  something  more  than  the 
dry  bones  of  long  withered  saints.  Their  God 
was  our  God,  and  their  Saviour,  let  us  trust,  will  be 
our  Saviour. 

I  am  well  aware  that  many  other  names  might 
have  been  added  to  those  mentioned  in  the  fore- 
going pages,  equally  deserving  remembrance,  and 
offering  pleasing  anecdotes  of  a  student's  life,  or 
illustrating  the  early  history  of  English  learning; 
many  facts  and  much  miscellaneous  matter  I  have 
collected  in  reference  to  them ;  but  I  am  fearful 
whether  my  readers  will  regard  this  subject  with 
sufficient  relish  to  enjoy  more  illustrations  of  the 
same  kind.  Students  are  apt  to  get  too  fond  of 
their  particular  pursuit,  which  magnifies  in  impor- 
tance with  the  difficulties  of  their  research,  or  the 
duration  of  their  studies.  I  am  uncertain  whether 
this  may  not  be  my  own  position,  and  wait  the 
decision  of  my  readers  before  proceeding  further 
in  the  annals  of  early  bibliomania. 

Moreover  as  to  the  simple  question — Were  the 
monks  booklovers  ?  enough  I  think  as  been  said  to 
prove  it,  but  the  enquiry  is  far  from  exhausted ; 
and  if  the  reader  should  deem  the  matter  still 
equivocal  and  undecided,  he  must  refer  the  blame 
to  the  feebleness  of  my  pen,  rather  than  to  the 
barrenness  of  my  subject.  But  let  him  not  fail  to 
mark  well  the  instances  I  have  given ;  let  him  look 
at   Benedict   Biscop  and  his  foreign  travels  after 


3o8  BIBLIOMANIA. 

books ;  at  Theodore  and  the  early  Saxons  of  the 
seventh  century ;  at  Boniface,  Alcuin,  ^Ifric,  and 
the  numerous  votaries  of  bibhomania  who  flourished 
then.  Look  at  the  well  stored  libraries  of  St.  Al- 
bans, Canterbury,  Ramsey,  Durham,  Croyland, 
Peterborough,  Glastonbury,  and  their  thousand 
tomes  of  parchment  literature.  Look  at  Richard 
de  Bury  and  his  sweet  little  work  on  biographical 
experience ;  at  Whethamstede  and  his  industrious 
pen ;  read  the  rules  of  monastic  orders ;  the  book 
of  Cassian  ;  the  regulations  of  St.  Augustine ; 
Benedict  Fulgentius ;  and  the  ancient  admonitions 
of  many  other  holy  and  ascetic  men.  Search  over 
the  remnants  and  shreds  of  information  which  have 
escaped  the  ravages  of  time,  and  the  havoc  of  cruel 
invasions  relative  to  these  things.  Attend  to  the 
import  of  these  small  still  whisperings  of  a  for- 
gotten age  ;  and  then,  letting  the  eye  traverse  down 
the  stream  of  time,  mark  the  great  advent  of  the 
Reformation  ;  that  wide  gulf  of  monkish  erudition 
in  which  was  swallowed  "whole  shyppes  full"  of 
olden  literature ;  think  well  and  deeply  over  the 
huge  bonfires  of  Henry's  reign,  the  flames  of  which 
were  kindled  by  the  libraries  which  monkish  in- 
dustry had  transcribed.  A  merry  sound  no  doubt, 
was  the  crackling  of  those  "popish  books"  for 
protestant  ears  to  feed  upon  ! 

Now  all  these  facts  thought  of  collectively — 
brought  to  bear  one  upon  another — seem  to  favor 
the  opinion  my  own  study  has  deduced  from  them  ; 
that  with  all  their  superstition,  with  all  their  igno- 
rance, their  blindness  to  philosophic  light — the 
monks  of  old  were  hearty  lovers  of  books;    that 


BIBLIOMANIA.  309 

they  encouraged  learning,  fostered  and  transcribed 
repeatedly  the  books  which  they  had  rescued  from 
the  destruction  of  war  and  time ;  and  so  kindly 
cherished  and  husbanded  them  as  intellectual  food 
for  posterity.  Such  being  the  case,  let  our  hearts 
look  charitably  upon  them ;  and  whilst  we  pity 
them  for  their  superstition,  or  blame  them  for  their 
"pious  frauds,"  love  them  as  brother  men  and 
workers  in  the  mines  of  literature ;  such  a  course 
is  far  more  honorable  to  the  tenor  of  a  christian's 
heart,  than  bespattering  their  memory  with  foul 
denunciations. 

Some  may  accuse  me  of  having  shown  too  much 
fondness — of  having  dwelt  with  a  too  loving  tender- 
ness in  my  retrospection  of  the  middle  ages.  But 
in  the  course  of  my  studies  I  have  found  much  to 
admire.  In  parchment  annals  coeval  with  the  times 
of  which  they  speak,  my  eyes  have  traversed  over 
many  consecutive  pages  with  increasing  interest 
and  with  enraptured  pleasure.  I  have  read  of  old 
deeds  worthy  of  an  honored  remembrance,  where 
I  least  expected  to  find  them.  I  have  met  with 
instances  of  faith  as  strong  as  death  bringing  forth 
fruit  in  abundance  in  those  sterile  times,  and 
glorying  God  with  its  lasting  incense.  I  have  met 
with  instances  of  piety  exalted  to  the  heavens — 
glowing  like  burning  lava,  and  warming  the  cold 
dull  cloisters  of  the  monks.  I  have  read  of  many 
a  student  who  spent  the  long  night  in  exploring 
mysteries  of  the  Bible  truths ;  and  have  seen  him 
sketched  by  a  monkish  pencil  with  his  ponderous 
volumes  spread  around  him,  and  the  oil  burning 
brightly  by  his  side.     I  have  watched  him  in  his 


3IO  BIBLIOMANIA. 

little  cell  thus  depicted  on  the  ancient  parchment, 
and  have  sympathized  with  his  painful  difficulties 
in  acquiring  true  knowledge,  or  enlightened  wis- 
dom, within  the  convent  walls ;  and  then  I  have 
read  the  pages  of  his  fellow  monk — perhaps,  his 
book-companion  ;  and  heard  what  he  had  to  say  of 
that  poor  lonely  Bible  student,  and  have  learnt 
with  sadness  how  often  truth  had  been  extinguished 
from  his  mind  by  superstition,  or  learning  cramped 
by  his  monkish  prejudices ;  but  it  has  not  always 
been  so,  and  I  have  enjoyed  a  more  gladdening 
view  on  finding  in  the  monk  a  Bible  teacher ;  and 
in  another,  a  profond  historian,  or  pleasing  annalist. 
As  a  Christian,  the  recollection  of  these  cheering 
facts,  with  which  my  researches  have  been  blessed, 
are  pleasurable,  and  lead  me  to  look  back  upon 
those  old  times  with  a  student's  fondness.  But 
besides  piety  and  virtue,  I  have  met  with  wisdom 
and  philanthrophy ;  the  former,  too  profound,  and 
the  latter,  too  generous  for  the  age ;  but  these 
things  are  precious,  and  worth  remembering ;  and 
how  can  I  speak  of  them  but  in  words  of  kindness  ? 
It  is  these  traits  of  worth  and  goodness  that  have 
gained  my  sympathies,  and  twined  round  my  heart, 
and  not  the  dark  stains  on  the  monkish  page  of 
history ;  these  I  have  always  striven  to  forget,  or  to 
remember  them  only  when  I  thought  experience 
might  profit  by  them ;  for  they  offer  a  terrible 
lesson  of  blood,  tyranny  and  anguish.  But  this 
dark  and  gloomy  side  is  the  one  which  from  our 
infancy  has  ever  been  before  us ;  we  learnt  it  when 
a  child  from  our  tutor  ;  or  at  college,  or  at  school ; 
we  learnt  it  in  the  pages  of  our  best  and  purest 


BIBLIOMANIA.  311 

writers ;  learnt  that  in  those  old  days  nought 
existed,  but  bloodshed,  tyranny,  and  anguish ;  but 
we  never  thought  once  to  gaze  at  the  scene  behind, 
and  behold  the  workings  of  human  charity  and 
love ;  if  we  had,  we  should  have  found  that  the 
same  passions,  the  same  affections,  and  the  same 
hopes  and  fears  existed  then  as  now,  and  our  sym- 
pathies would  have  been  won  by  learning  that  we 
were  reading  of  brother  men,  fellow  Christians, 
and  fellow-companions  in  the  Church  of  Christ. 
We  have  hitherto  looked,  when  casting  a  backward 
glance  at  those  long  gone  ages  of  inanimation, 
with  the  severity  of  a  judge  upon  a  criminal ;  but 
to  understand  him  properly  we  must  regard  them 
with  the  tender  compassion  of  a  parent ;  for  if  our 
art,  our  science,  and  our  philosophy  exalts  us  far 
above  them,  is  that  a  proof  that  there  was  nothing 
admirable,  nothing  that  can  call  forth  our  love  on 
that  infant  state,  or  in  the  annals  of  our  civilization 
at  its  early  growth  ? 

But  let  it  not  be  thought  that  if  I  have  striven 
to  retrieve  from  the  dust  and  gloom  of  antiquity, 
the  remembrance  of  old  things  that  are  worthy; 
that  I  feel  any  love  for  the  superstition  with  which 
we  find  them  blended.  There  is  much  that  is  good 
connected  with  those  times;  talent  even  that  is 
worth  imitating,  and  art  that  we  may  be  proud  to 
learn,  which  is  beginning  after  the  elapse  of  cent- 
uries to  arrest  the  attention  of  the  ingenious,  and 
the  love  of  these,  naturally  revive  with  the  dis- 
covery ;  but  we  need  not  fear  in  this  resurrection 
of  old  things  of  other  days,  that  the  superstition 
and  weakness  of  the  middle  ages  ;  that  the  venera- 


312  BIBLIOMANIA. 

tion  for  dry  bones  and  saintly  dust,  can  live  again. 
I  do  not  wish  to  make  the  past  assume  a  superiority 
over  the  present ;  but  I  think  a  contemplation  of 
medisevel  art  would  often  open  a  new  avenue  of 
thought  and  lead  to  many  a  pleasing  and  profitable 
discovery  ;  I  would  too  add  the  efforts  of  my  feeble 
pen  to  elevate  and  ennoble  the  fond  pursuit  of  my 
leisure  hours.  I  would  say  one  word  to  vindicate 
the  lover  of  old  musty  writings,  and  the  explorer  of 
rude  antiquities,  from  the  charge  of  unprofitable- 
ness, and  to  protect  him  from  the  sneer  of  ridicule. 
For  whilst  some  see  in  the  dry  studies  of  the 
antiquary  a  mere  inquisitiveness  after  forgotten 
facts  and  worthless  relics ;  I  can  see,  nay,  have  felt, 
something  morally  elevating  in  the  exercise  of  these 
inquiries.  It  is  not  the  mere  fact  which  may  some- 
times be  gained  by  rubbing  off  the  parochial  white- 
wash from  ancient  tablets,  or  the  encrusted  oxide 
from  monumental  brasses,  that  render  the  study  of 
ancient  relics  so  attractive ;  but  it  is  the  deductions 
which  may  sometimes  be  drawn  from  them.  The 
light  which  they  sometimes  cast  on  obscure  parts  of 
history,  and  the  fine  touches  of  human  sensibility, 
which  their  eulogies  and  monodies  bespeak,  that 
instruct  or  elevate  the  mind,  and  make  the  student's 
heart  beat  with  holier  and  loftier  feelings.  But  it 
is  not  my  duty  here  to  enter  into  the  motives,  the 
benefits,  or  the  most  profitable  manner  of  studying 
antiquity;  if  it  were,  I  would  strive  to  show  how 
much  superior  it  is  to  become  an  original  inves- 
tigator, a  practical  antiquary,  than  a  mere  borrower 
from  others.  For  the  most  delightful  moments  of 
the  student's  course  is  when  he   rambles  person- 


BIBLIOMANIA.  313 

ally  among  the  ruins  and  remnants  of  long  gone 
ages ;  sometimes  painful  are  such  sights,  even 
deeply  so  ;  but  never  to  a  righteous  mind  are  they 
unprofitable,  much  less  exerting  a  narrowing  ten- 
dency on  the  mind,  or  cramping  the  gushing  of 
human  feeling ;  for  cold,  indeed,  must  be  the  heart 
that  can  behold  strong  walls  tottering  to  decay, 
and  fretted  vaults,  mutilated  and  dismantled  of 
their  pristine  beauty ;  that  can  behold  the  proud 
strongholds  of  baronial  power  and  feudal  tyranny, 
the  victims  of  the  lichen  or  creeping  parasites  of 
the  ivy  tribe ;  cold,  I  say,  must  be  the  heart  that 
can  see  such  things,  and  draw  no  lesson  from 
them. 


INDEX. 


Adam  de  Botheby,  Abbot  of  Peterborough,  145. 

Adam,  Abbot  of  Evesham,  196. 

Adrian  IV.,  Pope  of  Rome,  Anecdote  of,  259,  260. 

-^Ifric,  Archbishop  of  Canterbury,  66,  67,  68,  69,  70,  71,  72,  73. 

^Ifride,  King  of  Northumbria,  160,  163. 

^Isinus,  the  Scribe,  232. 

Ailward's  Gift  of  Books  to  Evesham  Monastery,  195. 

Albans,  Abbey  of  St. — See  St.  Albans. 

Alcuin,  Verses  by,  ^7)^  ^79>  ^^o* — Letters  of,  98,  175,  181. — His 

Bible,  177. — Love  of  Books,  173,  176,  182. 
Aldred,  the  Glossator,  95. 
Aldwine,  Bishop  of  Lindesfame,  99. 
Alfred  the  Great,  151. 
Angell  de  Pisa,  a  Franciscan  Friar,  291. 
Angraville. — See  Richard  de  Bury. 
Anselm,  77,  78. 
Antiquarii,  42,  43. 

Amo,  Archbishop  of  Salzburg,  Library  of,  183,  184. 
Armarian,  Duties  of  the  Monkish,  13. 
Aristotle;  Translation  used  by  the  Schoolmen,  290. 
Ascehn,  Prior  of  Dover,  90. 
Augustine,  St.,  his  copy  of  the  Bible  and  other  books,  79. 


Baldwin,  Abbot  of,  St.  Edmund's  Bury,  242. 

Bale  on  the  destruction  of  books  at  the  Reformation,  8. 

Barkley's  description  of  a  Bibliomaniac,  301,  302,  303,  304. 


3i6  bibliomania: 

Basingstoke  and  his  Greek  books,  267. 

Bede  the  Venerable,  129,  162,  163,  170,  243. 

Bek,  Anthony,  Bishop  of  Durham,  104. 

Benedict,  Abbot  of  Peterborough,  and  his  books,  142,  143. 

Benedict,  Biscop  of  Wearmouth,  and  his  book  tours,  157, 158. 

Bible  among  the  Monks  in  the  middle  ages,  79,  89,  loi,  104, 

129,  144,  163,  177,  193,  194,  196,  207,  208,  211,  212,  233, 
.234,  237>  260,  261. 
Bible,  Monkish  care  in  copying  the,  36,  177. 
Bible,  errors  in  printed  copies,  36. 
Bible,  Translations  of,  71,  72,  156,  185,  296,  note. 
Bible,  Illustrations  of  the  scarcity  of  the,  in  the  middle  ages,  40, 

41,  89,  148,  231. 
Bible,  Students  in  the  middle  ages,  36,  71,  75,  88,  104,  144,  163, 

168,  177,  184. 
Bilfrid  the  Illuminator,  95. 

Binding,  costly,  54,  85,  93,  246,  247,  258,  261,  262,  263,  273. 
Blessing — Monkish  blessing  on  Books,  25. 
Boniface  the  Saxon  Missionary,  45,  164,  165,  166,  167. 
Books  allowed  the  Monks  for  private  reading,  20. 
Books-Destroyers,  6,  7,  8,  9,  195,  282. 
Books  sent  to  Oxford  by  the  Monks  of  Durham,  105. 
Book-Stalls,  Antiquity  of,  123. 
Booksellers  in  the  middle  ages,  46,  47. 
Britone  the  Librarian — his  catalogue  of  books  in  Glastonbury 

Abbey,  208. 
Bruges,  John  de,  a  Monk  of  Coventry,  and  his  books,  191. 

Caedmon,  the  Saxon  Poet,  185. 

Canterbury  Monastery,  etc.,  61. 

Canute,  the  Song  of,  244. 

Care  in  transcribing,  2,2»^  68. 

Carelepho,  Bishop  of  Durham,  loi. 

Carmelite,  287,  297. 

Carpenter,   Bishop,  built   and    endowed   a   library   in   Exeter 

Church,  194. 
Catalogues  of  Monastic  libraries,  10,  14,  82,  83,  102,  129,  130, 

142,  147, 179, 180,  190, 191,  208,  209,  210,  211,  219,  220,  237. 
Catalogue  of  the  books  of  Guy  Beauchamp,  Earl  of  Warwick, 

283,  284,  285. 
Charles  V.  of  France— his  fine  Library. 


BIBLIOMANIA,  317 

Charlemagne's  Bible,  177,  his  Library,  184. 

Charley's,  William,  Catalogue  of  the  Library  of  St.  Mary's  at 

Leicester,  148. 
Chiclely,  Henry,  Archbishop  of  Canterbury,  86. 
Cistercian  Monks  in  England,  221. 
Classics   among   the   Monks   in  the  middle  ages,   60,   84,   87, 

loi,  102,  116,  122,  129,   148,   190,  200,   208,  225,  226,  232, 

233.  240. 
Classics,  Monkish  opinion  of  the,  23,  227. 
Classics  found  in  Monasteries  at  the  revival  of  learning,  58, 

59,  60. 
Cluniac  Monks  in  England,  221. 
Cobham,  Eleanor  Duchess  of  Gloucester,  277,  278. 
Cobham,  Bishop,  founded  the  Library  at  Oxford,  194. 
Collier  on  the  destruction  of  books,  8. 
Converting  Miracles,  166. 
Coventry  Church,  191. 
Coventry  Miracles,  299. 
Croyland  Monastery,  Library  of,  135. 
Cuthbert's  Gospels,  93,  129. 

Danes  in  England,  95,  138,  139,  140. 

Daniel,  Bishop  of  Winchester,  168. 

De  Bury. — See  Richard  de  Bury. 

De  Estria  and  his  Catalogue  of  Canterbury  Library,  81. 

Depying  Priory,  Catalogue  of  the  Library  of,  234. 

Dover  Library,  90. 

Dunstan,  Saint,  64,  65. 

Eadburge — Abbess,  transcribes  books  for  Boniface,  169,  170. 

Eadfrid,  Abbot  of  St.  Albans,  249. 

Eadmer,  Abbot  of  St.  Albans,  251,  252. 

Ealdred,  Abbot  of  St.  Albans,  250. 

Eardulphus,  or  Eurdulphus,  Bishop  of  Lindesfarne,  96. 

Ecfrid  and  his  Queen,  242. 

Edmunds  Bury,  St.,  241. 

Edwine  the  Scribe,  79. 

Effects  of  Gospel  Reading,  236. 

Effects  of  the  Reformation  on  Monkish  learning,  8. 

Egbert,  Archbishop  of  York,  170,  173,  his  Library,  179,  180. 

Egebric,  Abbot  of  Croyland,  his  gift  of  books  to  the  Library,  137. 


3i8  BIBLIOMANIA. 

Egfrith,  Bishop  of  Lindesfarne,  93. 

Eleanor  Cobham,  Duchess  of  Gloucester,  277,  278. 

Ethelbert,  87. 

Etheldredae  founds  the  Monastery  of  Ely,  243. 

Ethelwold,  Bishop  of  Winchester — his  love  of  Architecture,  229, 

244,  his  fine  Benedictional,  230. 

Ely  Monastery,  243,  244.     Extracts  from  the  Account   Books 

of,  245. 
Erveatus  the  Illuminator,  147. 
Esseburn,  Henry,  296. 
Evesham  Monastery,  195,  196,  197,   198,   199,  200,  201,  202, 

203,  204. 

Fathers,  Veneration  for  the,  38,  39. 
Frederic,  Abbot  of  St.  Albans,  253. 
Franciscan  Library  at  Oxford,  294. 

Friars,  Mendicant,  115,  116,  288,  289,  290,  291,  292,  293, 
294. 

GeofFry  de  Gorham,  Abbot  of  St.  Albans,  255,  256. 

Gerbert,  extract  from  a  letter  of,  45. 

Gift  of  books  to  Richard  de  Bury  by  the  Monks  of  St.  Al- 
bans, 121. 

Glanvill,  Bishop  of  Rochester,  91. 

Glastonbury  Abbey,  205,  206,  207,  208,  209,  210,  211,  212, 
213,  214. 

Gloucester  Abbey,  218. 

Godeman,  Abbot  of  Gloucester,  218. 

Godemann  the  Scribe,  231,  232. 

Godfrey,  Abbot  of  Peterborough,  145,  146. 

Godinge  the  Librarian  to  Exeter  Church,  193,  194. 

Godiva,  Lady  and  her  good  deeds,  193,  194. 

Gospels,  notices  of  among  the  Monks  in  the  middle  ages,  86,  89, 
90,  91,  92,  129,  139,  140,  141,  142,  169,  196,  217,  221,  244, 

245,  246,  note,  255,  262. 
Graystane,  Robert  de,  105. 

Grostest,  Robert,  Bishop  of  Lincoln,  292,  293. 
Gundulph,  Bishop  of  Rochester,  87. 
Guthlac,  St.,  of  Croyland,  135. 

Guy,  Earl  of  Warwick,  his  gift  of  books  to  Bordesley  Abbey, 
283,  284,  285. 


BIBLIOMANIA.  319 

Hebrew  Manuscripts  among  the  Monks,  238,  293,  294. 

Henry  the  Second  of  England,  223,  227. 

Henry  de  Estria  and  his  Catalogue  of  Canterbury  Library,  81. 

Henry,  a  Monk  of  Hyde  Abbey,  231,  232. 

Hilda,  184. 

Holdernesse,  Abbot  of  Peterborough,  145. 

Hoton,  Prior  of  Durham,  105. 

Hubert  Walter,  Archbishop  of  Canterbury,  79. 

Hunting  practised  by  the  Monks  and  Churchmen,  224. 

Humphrey,  Duke  of  Gloucester,  275.  His  domestic  troubles, 
277,  278,  279.  His  death,  279.  Lydgate's  Verses  upon,  a8o, 
281.     His  Gift  of  Books  to  Oxford,  281,  282,  283. 

Illuminated  MSS.,  54. 

Ina,  King  of  the  West  Saxons,  206. 

Jarrow,  157. 

John  de  Bruges  of  Coventry  Church,  191. 
John,  Prior  of  Evesham,  199,  200,  201,  202,  203,  204. 
John  of  Taunton,  a  Monk  of  Glastonbury,  his  Catalogue  of 
Books,  208. 

Kernulfus,  Abbot  of  Peterborough,  141. 

Kinfemus,  Archbishop  of  York,  gift  of  the  Gospels  to  Peter- 
borough Monastery,  141. 
Kildwardly,  Archbishop  of  Canterbury,  79. 

Lanfranc,  Archbishop  of  Canterbury,  75. 

Langley,  Thomas,  131. 

Laws  of  the  Universities  over  booksellers,  48,  49,  50,  51,  52. 

Lending  books,  system  of  among  the  Monks,  17,  20;  by  the 

booksellers,  52. 
Leofin,  Abbot  of  Ely,  244. 
Leofric,  Abbot  of  St.  Albans,  249. 

Leofric,  Bishop  of  Exeter,  218;  his  Private  Library,  219. 
Leofricke,  Earl  of  Mercia,  192. 
Leofricus,  Abbot  of  Peterborough,  141. 
Leicester,  Abbey  of  St.  Mary  de  la  Pre,  at,  148,  149. 
Libraries  in  the  middle  ages. — See  Catalogues. 
Libraries,  how  supported,  24,  25,  79,  198,  199. 
Librarii,  or  booksellers,  42,  43,  44,  45,  46,  47,  48,  49. 
Lindesfame,  93. 


320  BIBLIOMANIA. 

Livy,  the  lost  decades  of,  214. 

Lul.  Majestro,  168,  169. 

LuUa,  Bishop  of  Coena,  171. 

Lydgate's  Verses  on  Baldwin,  Abbot  of  St.  Edmunds  Bury,  242 ; 

on  Duke  Humphrey,  280,  281. 
Malmsbury  Monastery,  214. 

Malmsbury,  William  of,  214,  215,  216,  217,  218,  219. 
Mannius,  Abbot  of  Evesham,  his  skill  in  illuminating,  195. 
Manuscripts,  Ancient,  described,  78,  79,  186,  187. 
Manuscripts,  Collections  of,  5. 

Marlebergh,  Thomas  of,  196,  197,  198,  199,  200,  201,  202. 
Medeshamstede,  139. 
Mendicant   Friars,    115,    116,   287,    288,    289,    290,    291,   292, 

293,  294. 
Michael  de  Wentmore,  Abbot  of  St.  Albans,  and  his  muitis  volu- 

minibus,  268. 
Milton  and  Caedmon  compared,  188. 
Monachism,  29,  36,  307,  308,  309. 
Monastic  training,  263,  264,  265. 
Monks,  the  preservers  of  books,  29. 

Nicholas,  of  St.  Albans,  267,  292. 
Nicholas  Brekspere,  259,  260. 
Nicholas  Hereford,  of  Evesham,  203,  204. 
Nigel,  Bishop  of  Ely,  244,  245,  246. 
Norman  Conquest.     Effect  of  the,  74. 
Northone,  Abbot  of  St.  Albans,  267. 
Nothelm,  Archbishop  of  Canterbury,  64,  i;i. 

Offa,  King,  4,  192,  247.     Alcuin's  Letter  to,  175. 

Osbern,  of  Shepey,  91. 

Oswald,  Bishop  of  Worcester,  24,  193. 

Paul  or  Paulinus,  of  St.  Albans,  77,  253. 

Peter  of  Blois,  Archdeacon  of  London,  47,  222,  223,  224,  225, 

226,  227,  228. 
Peter,  Abbot  of  Gloucester,  218. 
Peterborough  Monastery,  138.     Library,  147,  148. 
Petrarch,  107,  108,  109. 
Philobiblon,  by  Richard  de  Bury,  112. 
Prior  John,  of  Evesham,  199. 


BIBLIOMANIA.  321 

Puritans  destroy  the  Library  in  Worcester  Church,  194. 

Purple  Manuscripts,  54. 

Pusar,  Hugh  de,  Bishop  of  Durham,  103. 

Radolphus,  Bishop  of  Rochester,  90. 

Ralph  de  Gobium,  Abbot  of  St.  Albans,  257,  258. 

Ramsey  Abbey,  237.  Hebrew  MSS.  at  Ramsey,  239,  Clas- 
sics, 240. 

Raymond,  Prior  of  St.  Albans,  262,  263. 

Reading  Abbey.     Library  of,  233. 

Reginald,  Archdeacon  of  Salisbury,  reproved  for  his  love  of  fal- 
conry, 227. 

Reginald,  of  Evesham,  196. 

Richard  de  Albini,  255. 

Richard  de  Bury,  17,  105,  106,  107,  108,  109,  no,  in,  112,  113, 
114,  115,  116,  117,  118,  119,  120,  121, 122,  123, 124,  125, 126, 
127,  128,  268. 

Richard  de  Stowe,  218. 

Richard  of  London,  145. 

Richard  Wallingford,  Abbot  of  St.  Albans,  121. 

Richard  Whiting,  the  last  Abbot  of  Glastonbury,  213,  214. 

Ridiculous  signs  for  books. — See  signs. 

Rievall  Monastery,  library  of,  190,  191,  192. 

Robert  de  Gorham,  Abbot  of  St.  Albans,  257,  258. 

Robert,  of  Lyndeshye,  144. 

Robert,  of  Sutton,  145. 

Roger  de  Northone,  267. 

Roger  de  Thoris,  Archdeacon  of  Exeter.  Gift  of  books  to  the 
Friars  at  Exeter,  294,  295. 

Ryphum  Monastery;  gift  of  books  to,  163. 

Scarcity  of  Parchment,  56,  57,  245,  246. 

Scholastic  Philosophy,  289. 

Scribes,  Monkish,  44. 

Scriptoria,  30,  31,  32,  33,  34,  198,  199,  253,  254. 

Sellynge,  William,  Prior  of  Canterbury,  Zd. 

Signs  for  books  used  by  the  Monks,  22,  23. 

Simon,  Abbot  of  St.  Albans,  260. 

St.  Alban's  Abbey,  120,  121,  247,  et  seq. 

St.  Joseph,  of  Arimathea,  206. 

St.  Mary's,  at  Coventry,  191,  192. 


322  BIBLIOMANIA. 

St.  Mary's  de  la  Pre,  at  Leicester.     Library  of,  149. 
Stylus  or  pen,  154. 

Tatwyne,  Archbishop  of  Canterbury,  63. 
Taunton,  John  of,  208. 
Taunton,  William  of,  211. 

Theodore  of  Tharsus,  Archbishop  of  Canterbury,  62. 
Thomas  de  la  Mare,  Abbot  of  St.  Albans,  268. 
Thomas  of  Marleberg,  Prior  of  Evesham,  197. 
Trompington,  William  de,  Abbot  of  St.  Albans,  265,  266. 
Tully's  de  Republica,  86. 

Valerius  Maximus,  Duke  Humphrey's  copy  of,  282. 

Value  of  books  in  the  middle  ages,  54,  203,  204,  245,  273,  282, 

283,  295. 
Verses  written  in  books  by  Whethamstede,  274. 
Verulam,  ruins  of,  excavated  by  Eadmer,  of  St.  Albans,  250. 

Waleran,  Bishop  of  Rochester,  91. 

Walter,  Bishop  of  Rochester,  91. 

Walter,  Bishop  of  Winchester,  fond  of  hunting,  224,  225. 

Walter,  of  Evesham,  196. 

Walter,  of  St.  Edmunds  Bury,  145. 

Walter,  Prior  of  St.  Swithin,  231. 

Wearmouth,  Monastery  of,  157. 

Wentmore,  Abbot  of  St.  Albans,  268, 

Whethamstede,  Abbot  of  St.  Albans,  268,  269;  his  works,  272  ; 

gift  of  books  to  Gloucester  college,  274. 
Whitby  Abbey,  184,  185,  186,  187,  188,  189. 
Wilfrid,  162,  163,  243. 
Willigod,  Abbot  of  St.  Albans,  248. 
William,  of  Wodeford,  145. 

Winchester,  famous  for  his  Scribes,  168,  229,  230,  231,  232. 
Worcester,  Church  of,  192. 
Wulstan,  Archbishop  of  York,  147. 

York  Cathedral  Library,  X79,  180. 


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